Runway
by Suki59
Summary: Sookie is the runway booker at an L.A. modeling agency. Eric Northman is a supermodel who's about to rock her world. AH, AU, OOC.
1. Chapter 1

Charlaine Harris owns these characters.

I'd been working as the runway booker at Merlotte's Models and Talent for almost five years when I met Eric Northman. I was very good at my job and hoping to one day be a partner with Sam Merlotte, but all that came crashing to an end on that fateful night. Years of hard work flew out the window after my incredibly stupid lapse in judgment.

I'd started my career as a receptionist at Merlotte's shortly after moving to Los Angeles fresh out of college. Armed with a degree in Fashion Merchandising from Shreveport University but having no clue what to do with it, I drove across the country to the land of sunshine. I spent almost all my savings on a deposit on a tiny single apartment in Hollywood and started looking for a job.

The day I met Sam Merlotte, I knew I'd found something special. Not only did he become a very good friend and occasional star in my personal fantasies, but he introduced me to the world in which I wanted my career.

Within a few weeks of my answering the phones, Arlene, the runway booker, left to work for Supreme Models, Merlotte's biggest competitor for fashion shows. All twenty-five runway models left with Arlene, essentially putting Merlotte's out of the runway business.

We still had a strong print department and our commercial department did well, but I knew we'd miss the steady bread and butter that runway brought in for the agency. I had no idea what Sam had planned—would he look for another booker? Close the department altogether? I just hoped that my job wasn't in jeopardy with the agency's loss of income.

Every Tuesday was open call day and from eleven to one any model could walk in off the street and present his or her portfolio to the agency in the hopes of gaining representation. Even though I was very green, Sam trusted me to glance at the books of the models and determine which ones could make it past the reception desk to meet with one of the bookers. I knew the height requirements, of course, and had a decent eye for good photos, but probably sent more than I should have back to the bookers' table.

On the Tuesday after we'd lost our runway division to Supreme, a beautiful blonde model presented me with her book and introduced herself as Pam Ravenscroft. She was the right height and certainly gorgeous enough, but she didn't have many photos in her book, even though the ones she did have were very impressive.

"I know I'm a little weak in print experience. I do mostly runway," she explained as I flipped through the pages of her book.

"Oh, that's great, but we recently closed our runway division."

"I know. I'm with Supreme."

That got my attention.

She continued, "Arlene Fowler's my new booker, and let's just say I'm not a big fan."

"Oh?"

"I've been working in L.A. for four years and all the biggest runway clients use me. But I really want to do more print."

"We have a great print department, but I'm not sure what to tell you about the runway department. At the moment, we're in limbo."

Pam's perfect lips formed a devilish smile. "That's what I figured."

My curiosity was piqued. "If you figured we were in limbo, then why would you want to come here and risk losing all your runway clients?"

"I have no intention of losing them. What would you say if I promised you that I could bring at least a dozen of L.A.'s top runway models to you? You could open a new runway division. Most of my friends don't like Arlene and would happily follow me here."

"Really? A dozen?"

"Probably more. Oh, and my brother is Eric Northman," she added casually.

That really got my attention. Eric Northman was a supermodel based in New York. Tall and blond and drop-dead gorgeous. His day rate was probably more than my annual salary.

"Wow. I'm a big fan of his."

"Well, of course you are. You're female." She laughed, but for some reason, I wasn't offended. She had a way of making me feel like I was in her little inner circle and I liked it. "He doesn't work in L.A. very often, but I could probably get him to come once in awhile for a few bookings. He's not exclusive with anyone here."

"Would you excuse me for just a minute?"

"Of course." She was all smiles.

I ran back into the main room and found Sam at the bookers' table on the phone. All four bookers sat at a big round table in the center of the room. Sam sat in the fifth seat. The bookers were all on the phones. I stood beside Sam and in front of the wall of models' zed cards, hoping to get his attention. As soon as he hung up, he turned to face me.

"There's a runway model here named Pam Ravenscroft," I began.

"Yeah, I've heard of her."

"She wants to do more print."

"She's a runway model."

"I know. If we take her for print, she says she can bring us a dozen of Supreme's runway models."

"Is that so?" I could see the wheels turning in Sam's head.

"And her brother is Eric Northman."

Sam stood up. "Have her meet me in my office."

I found Pam waiting patiently in the reception area with the other hopefuls and sent her back to meet with Sam.

As she passed me, she asked, "What's your name?"

"Sookie. Sookie Stackhouse."

"I owe you one, Sookie.'

"Not at all."

I pointed to the open door beyond the bookers' table and Pam sashayed through the room like she was on a runway. She turned back and gave me a wink as she closed Sam's office door behind her.

I was saying a gentle "no" to the last model in the open call—a pretty redhead who was a good three inches too short—when Pam passed me on her way out.

"Thanks, Sookie. I'll see you soon!" Pam said as she breezed by me.

I gave her a wave and went back to the redhead, handing her the sheet of L.A. agencies that I knew would all tell her the same thing. She was too short.

As soon as the redhead left, lunch was delivered. I paid the delivery guy from petty cash and took the sandwiches back to the bookers' table.

"Sookie, can I see you in my office? Terry, watch the phones," Sam said from the doorway of his office.

Terry was one of the print agents—the only one not on the phone.

I extricated Sam's sandwich from the box I had set on the table and followed him into his office.

"Go grab your lunch, Sookie."

I was surprised to be invited to eat with Sam, but did as I was told. As I sat down in the chair across from his desk, I unwrapped my food and took a bite.

"Great call sending Pam Ravenscroft back," he said as he started to eat.

"Oh good."

"You've got a good eye."

"Thanks."

"And a good head for business."

"Thank you." I had no idea what he was talking about.

"We're taking Pam on, and she's bringing us some of the other runway girls—some of Supreme's biggest girls. And a few of their guys as well."

"That's great."

"And, she thinks we can book her brother for an occasional L.A. trip here and there—nothing to sneeze at."

"Great."

"How would you like to be the new runway booker?"

I almost choked. "Excuse me?"

"I'm doubling your pay. You start tomorrow."

"Really?" I couldn't seem to suppress my huge grin.

"Really."

And just like that, I was the runway booker at Merlotte's and had an instant runway department full of models and the confidence of Sam Merlotte himself. I was on my way.


	2. Chapter 2

I had never met Eric Northman in the nearly five years I'd been booking at Merlotte's. He'd come to L.A. several times for occasional print bookings, but it seemed every time he'd come into the agency, I'd been out of the office for one reason or another. He had a reputation for being a real lady killer, being basically the handsomest man on the planet and one of the few completely straight male supermodels.

Of course, I was curious to see him in person, but figured it was probably for the best that I'd missed meeting him. My crush was bad enough. Seeing him in the flesh would probably just make it worse.

Eric's sister, Pam, had become a very dear friend. (I discovered that they were actually half-siblings which explained their different last names.) She had single-handedly landed me my dream job by coming to Merlotte's on that open call. When she agreed to come to us, nineteen of her friends came as well, instantly putting us on the map as the new hot runway agency in Los Angeles. Pam put me in touch with all her clients and within six months, our budding little runway division had grown to thirty-two models and we were the top runway agency in town just like that.

I worked hard developing relationships with clients and courting new ones. I was inexperienced but determined to deserve Sam's confidence. As our runway division grew, so did my salary. Sam was generous and appreciative of my dedication.

I briefly considered moving into a bigger apartment, but opted instead to save my money in the hopes of one day buying into the agency. I wanted to be a partner to Sam, so I invested my money carefully and conservatively with my eye on the future. I had no idea what it might cost to own a part of Merlotte's, but I saved as much as I could.

I didn't date much, although I did have a brief relationship with an events planner named John Quinn. We met at The Standard Hotel one night when I was out with Pam. She left me to go flirt with a pretty brunette girl (Pam preferred dating women.), and Quinn, as he liked to be called, kept me company.

Pam always referred to him as "q-tip head," but he was nice enough. (He did have a shaved head, and yes, it did look a little like a q-tip.) We dated occasionally for a few months, but didn't sleep together. We did kiss, but that was it. It bugged me that he always called me "babe." I wondered if he secretly couldn't remember my name, and it turned me off. We never really broke up. He just stopped calling and I let him. No big deal.

I occasionally went to the shows that I booked. Most of them were on the weekends. Once in awhile, I'd go to watch one and then Pam and I would go out afterwards for a drink.

I had booked fourteen models for a big Calvin Klein show at The California Mart on a Saturday night and decided to go watch it. Yes, Eric Northman was one of the models in the show, and yes, I wanted to see him in person. He had flown in from New York for a print job the day before and agreed to do the show before he left the following day. Sam had always handled his bookings and the show was no exception. I'd never actually spoken to him on the phone.

Pam and I had made plans to have a drink later, but when I got to The Mart before the show, she said she'd have to cancel and didn't give me a reason.

I was standing backstage before the show talking to some of the girls when I saw him. He was sitting in a makeup chair getting powdered. Even though he was seated, I could see he was very tall even for a model, at 6'4" and had long blond hair—his signature look whether it was in style or not—and the most beautiful blue eyes I'd ever seen. He smiled at me from across the room before closing his eyes as the makeup artist brushed his face with powder. I felt a rush of adrenaline and blushed like a school girl. Before he could open his eyes again, I left the backstage area and went out front to find my seat in the audience.

Sophie-Anne Le Clerq was the show coordinator and had greeted me as an honored guest and reserved a seat for me in the front row. The audience grew quiet as the lights dimmed. The room was pitch black before spotlights hit a handful of models posing on stage. The music came up and the models moved in unison, walking down the runway as it was lit. We all applauded and I was so proud as I watched my models. Pam came out in the second group looking stunning in a crisp black skirted suit with a wide-brimmed hat.

In the entire first scene, all the models wore black, and they posed and walked in groups of three or four until the final model appeared alone: Eric Northman. He took the stage, walking slower than the others and not in sync with the music at all. But in doing so, he owned the stage in his perfectly fitted black suit and stood out as something very special. The audience clapped at the superstar and as he passed by me, he looked directly into my eyes and smiled the same smile I'd gotten backstage. Could he see me? Was it my imagination? I smiled back like a fool, feeling like we were the only two people in the room rather than two of the two hundred or so sitting in the seats with me.

He casually turned at the end of the runway and strolled back to the stage, turning one last time to face the audience before the lights dimmed. I caught a last twinkle of his stunning blue eyes as they caught mine again just before the stage went dark. My heart was pounding in my chest.

Eric appeared seven times on stage and each time, he seemed to single me out and give me a smile. I honestly wondered if I was losing my mind. Surely, it was my imagination that he connected with me. Maybe that was his gift—to make every woman in the room feel as if he'd noticed her. I let the lights and the music and his blue eyes lure me into a trance as I watched the show, fantasizing with every scene that I was alone in the room with Eric Northman—that we were the only two people on earth.

I snapped out of my fantasy as the models all snaked out onstage for the finale, clapping their hands as they followed one another out to the end of the runway and then back and offstage. The house lights came up and I reached underneath my seat and retrieved my purse.

I watched the room full of people head for the exits as I went to the door beside the stage and knocked. Sophie-Anne herself let me in and I congratulated her on a great show before finding my way to the dressing area. I stopped and spoke to several of the women as they dressed before I came to Pam. Her dresser was pulling her very tight jeans up as she stepped into her heels.

"You were great!" I said.

"Thanks, Sookie! Did you get to meet Eric?"

"No." I glanced towards the men's side and caught a glimpse of his perfect butt as he pulled on a pair of jeans over his black boxer briefs that fittingly said "Calvin Klein" on the waistband. His back was to me and I quickly looked back to Pam. "He was great though. You all were."

"I'm sorry I had to cancel on you. Amelia's in town."

"That's okay. Tell her I said hi." Amelia was a New York model that Pam had a thing with from time to time.

"I'll introduce you to Eric." She was buttoning her blouse.

"No, that's okay. I'll meet him some other time." I'm not sure why I was so nervous. I didn't dare look to the men's side of the room again. "I'll talk to you later, okay?"

"Okay."

Pam gave me a hug and I got several hugs from some of the other girls as I made my way to the exit. I found my way back out into the house and followed the remaining audience members out to the lobby.

As I emerged into the night air through the front doors of the building, I was relieved to get outside and away from the supermodel who'd made me so nervous. I crossed 9th Street to the parking lot where I'd left my car. I waved goodnight to a couple of my models while I dug through my purse for my keys. As I approached my car, I realized that my keys weren't in my purse and started to panic a little.

I checked my pockets and kept digging into my purse. No keys. I turned and headed back to The Mart, passing the last people coming out the doors. I hurried through the lobby and fortunately, the doors to the theater weren't locked. I opened one and found the room empty and dark, lit only by the lights still on at the back of the stage. I found my seat and got down on my hands and knees to feel around the floor underneath my chair. As soon as I felt the keys in my hand, I heard my name.

"Sookie?"

I stood and looked up on the runway and there he was, beautifully backlit, wearing jeans and a gray cashmere sweater, looking like a god.

"Hi."

"I'm Eric."

"Yeah, I know. It's nice to finally meet you."

"You too." He hopped off the four-foot high ramp and landed a little too close to me.

"You were great in the show," I said, and wondered why my voice sounded so shaky.

He didn't answer me but just looked into my eyes wearing the sweetest smile. It was dark, but his eyes caught the light from the stage. They were such a piercing blue. He took a step closer. "Sookie." He said my name as if he just wanted to hear the sound of it.

And then his lips were on mine. I was so shocked that I don't think I even reacted at first. But then I was so overwhelmed with how soft his lips were and how great he smelled and tasted and how strong his arms felt as they wrapped around me. I simply melted and parted my lips, inviting the tongue of a stranger in—a first for me.

We stood there kissing for a long moment. It was surreal being in the arms of this man—like a fantasy come true. I laced my fingers through his hair and pulled him closer. He turned us around and pressed me up against the runway as his breathing became heavier and his tongue more forceful. I moaned into his mouth and became aware of an erection pressing into me.

I knew I should stop him, but I couldn't. All I could do was hold him tighter and kiss him harder and press my body into his. I'm not sure how long we stood there mashing our bodies together, but soon the fantasy was interrupted by a woman clearing her throat.

"Excuse me, but I need to lock up."

It was Sophie-Anne.

I pushed Eric away and broke the kiss.

"I'm so sorry. I was just leaving," I spoke towards the voice. Eric was staring at me, his chest heaving.

I grabbed my forgotten purse and keys off of the floor where I'd dropped them behind Eric and walked briskly towards the door, suddenly terribly embarrassed by my behavior. And in front of a client. Jesus.

I kept going out into the lobby and then out the front door into the night. I didn't know if Eric was following me or not, but I started to run and luckily, caught the light just right, dashing through the crosswalk towards my car.

I got the car started and as I pulled into the street, I glanced over to The Mart, but didn't see anyone.

What in the world had just happened to me? I had lost my mind. And had I also lost a client? Good lord, I could probably even lose my job. What I had done was so unprofessional on so many levels, I couldn't even begin to list all the reasons it was so wrong.

When I got home, I opened my sofa bed and threw myself onto it, curling into a little ball. I was so ashamed and upset at the thought of tossing my whole career away because I was swept off my feet by some pretty-boy supermodel. God, it was embarrassing. How would I ever be able to explain it to Sam when I couldn't even explain it to myself?

I didn't even bother to undress, but just pulled the covers up over me as I wallowed in self-pity and self-loathing. Just when I thought I couldn't feel any worse, I found a way to make it just a little bit worse by admitting to myself that even though it was completely wrong and completely embarrassing, it was also completely wonderful. I fell asleep more confused that I'd ever been in my life. Confused about Eric Northman and how he'd made me feel.


	3. Chapter 3

I went straight into Sam's office first thing Monday morning, wondering if he'd heard from Sophie-Anne yet. He wasn't there, but just as I was turning to leave, he appeared behind me.

"Hey, Sook. I'm gonna make some coffee. Did you need something?"

He turned and headed towards the little kitchen off of the main booking room. He didn't seem mad at all.

I followed him and as he started to empty the coffee filter, I stepped up to him.

"I'll do that."

"That's okay. Have a seat. What's on your mind?"

I sat in a little chrome chair by the table and watched as he made the coffee.

"Have you spoken to Sophie-Anne Le Clerq?" I began.

"No. Should I have?"

I took a deep breath. "You'll probably get a call about Saturday night."

"Did something go wrong with the show?"

"Not exactly."

Sam sat in the chair across from me.

"What is it then?"

"This is so hard to say."

"Sookie, you're freaking me out. Just say it."

"Sophie-Anne had to ask me to leave the theater after the show. She was probably very angry."

"Why would she be angry?"

"Because I was…um…with one of the models in the theater after the show." There. I'd said it.

Sam smiled, looking much more amused than he should. "_With _one of the models? I'm assuming you weren't discussing the show."

I felt my cheeks flush. "No. We weren't discussing anything actually." I looked down at my lap, waiting for Sam's disappointment.

"Well, alrighty then. How about that?"

I looked at Sam's face. He was grinning from ear to ear.

"You're not mad?" I asked.

"Why would I be mad? Because one of my bookers—one who is very single and very beautiful—had herself a little fun with someone? I'm assuming that the model was also single and above the age of consent."

"Yes." I was dumbfounded.

"So, where's the harm? Did you break any laws? Destroy property? Defile the runway?" His smile was positively devilish.

"Oh my god, no. It wasn't like that. We just…"

Sam cut me off. "Nope, no details, please. I really prefer the image I have in my head right now." He stood and took two mugs from the cabinet, setting them on the counter. "Do you want me to talk to Sophie-Anne?"

"No. I mean yes, if she calls you. Should I call her? Offer an apology?"

"I wouldn't. I'd be willing to bet it's a non-issue. Seriously, Sookie, I wouldn't worry about it." He poured coffee into the two cups. "Crème or sugar?"

"Just crème, thanks."

After Sam stirred the crème into my coffee, he set the cup in front of me and sat back in the chair holding his own cup.

"I think you need a vacation, Sookie."

"A vacation?"

"Yeah, you know—take a few days off, go somewhere fun. Relax. I don't think you've ever taken any time off, have you?"

"No, but neither have you."

"Well, I'm the owner. It's different."

"I'm saving my money for…something." I had never discussed my hopes to someday buy into the agency with Sam.

"So, take a cheap vacation. We get that low rate at The Waldorf in New York for the models. Go see the city for a few days."

"New York?" I'd never been to New York, but I'd always really wanted to see it.

"Yeah. Why not? I think flights are fairly inexpensive right now. Ask Terry. He just booked a few tickets for some of the models. I can handle any bookings that come in for you." He sat back and smiled. "And I can handle Sophie-Anne."

I couldn't help but smile back. He was so good to me. Not only was he not angry at my indiscretion, but he wanted me to take a vacation. I'd worried for nothing. "Maybe I could just check on a flight."

"Great." He stood and picked up his coffee mug. "Just let me know when you've made your plans."

"Thanks, Sam," I said as he passed me and went towards his office.

Then I went out to the booking table to ask Terry about getting a flight to New York.

Two days later, I had checked into my room at The Waldorf Astoria, eaten a fabulous dinner in the restaurant downstairs and was walking along the sidewalk in New York City. It was a crisp fall evening, and the sidewalks were crowded with people. I loved the feel of the city—the pace of the cars and pedestrians. There were so many different kinds of shops and restaurants. I just meandered from one little store to the next until I found a Starbucks and sat in the window with a hot chocolate watching the people.

I wasn't certain what I wanted to do during my three days in New York. I had planned everything in such a hurry, I hadn't really thought about what I wanted to see.

As I headed back towards the hotel, I decided I'd try to go to bed even though my internal clock was still on west coast time. I wanted to get an early start on my first day as a tourist.

I took a shower and pulled my little nightie on. I hung my peacoat in the closet, but decided I'd unpack my suitcase in the morning. I climbed into bed and watched the beginning of Zoolander on TV.

I'd seen it before, but not for a long time—not since I'd started working in the modeling industry myself. I'd forgotten how funny it was, and now it was even funnier to me since I was familiar with the real modeling world.

One of Zoolander's goofy model roommates reminded me a little of Eric Northman even though the roommate was much younger and not nearly as handsome. I tried to picture Eric as a younger guy, new to the business and as geeky as the guy on the screen. Soon, I found myself wondering if I'd ever see Eric again.

Yes, I was embarrassed about my ridiculous behavior at The Mart, but I still had a mad crush on the man. Making out with him and grinding my hips into his hard-on hadn't exactly helped in that department.

Had the knowledge that he lived here influenced my decision to come to the city? I told myself that it hadn't, but I wasn't very convincing. No, I didn't have his phone number with me or his address, but I knew I could get both with a quick call to the agency or to Pam.

I turned the TV off and started to fall asleep even though I was excited about my new adventures exploring the city. I was seriously considering getting in touch with Eric Northman. My last thoughts before drifting off to sleep were of our kiss in the dark. Little did I know I wouldn't be getting much sleep.

An incredibly loud and obnoxious alarm woke me from a sound sleep. I jumped out of bed and pulled on my boots that were sitting on the floor. I looked around the dark room for a second before I remembered I'd left the big fluffy bathrobe hanging in the bathroom.

The instant I started for the bathroom, I was hit with a spray of freezing water. My brain finally woke up and I realized that I needed to get out of the hotel immediately. It was raining in my room and that alarm was screaming in my ears. I flung the door open before thinking that I should have checked it first to see if it was hot. Fortunately, it was just as cold and wet in the hallway, which was filling up with people. I joined the group of people emerging from the rooms as we headed quickly down the hall together and into a stairwell. I was struck at how quietly the people moved. Very few of them spoke as we hurried down the steps. I wanted to get outside, away from that awful alarm and away from the freezing water.

As soon as I got out on the sidewalk, a fireman was directing us up the block and away from the building. I was relieved to be out of the interior rain, but the night air hit my wet body with a shock. My little cotton gown was thankfully long enough to cover my bare bottom, but not by much. I wrapped my arms around myself in a sad attempt to warm myself and also to cover my breasts as the wet cotton clung to them.

The people in front of me finally stopped and so I did as well. A police officer asked us to step closer to the buildings so the sidewalk wasn't blocked. I backed up to a wall of cold brick and watched as the street filled with men and women in uniforms, all hustling and doing their jobs. There were four fire engines and countless police cars as far as I could see, but the traffic was still moving in the street, although very slowly. People were lining the sidewalk across the street watching the drama unfold in front of them.

I looked down the sidewalk beside me and saw a long line of wet people in various states of undress. Many of us weren't even wearing shoes and I was grateful to at least have my boots.

Within minutes, I was shivering from the cold and cursing myself for leaving the robe behind. Even wet, it would have been better than nothing. Then I thought of my coat hanging in the closet. But I'd been in such a deep sleep, my brain wasn't working well when I was awakened by the alarm.

While we waited, some people crouched down to the ground in an attempt to stay warmer, but I knew that my gown was too short for that, so I remained standing. I watched a man in a black suit coming up the line with a pen and notebook. He was taking down names and room numbers and telling people that blankets were on the way.

I was trying to control my shaking and watching the man intently, waiting for my turn, but when he was about ten or twelve people away from me, I heard my name from the opposite direction.

"Sookie!"

I turned my head and wondered for a brief instant if I was hallucinating. Eric Northman was jogging in my direction, taking his trench coat off as he approached me. Before I could say a word, the coat was wrapped around my shoulders and I was in the warm strong arms of Eric. I felt his hands rubbing up and down my back over the coat and he asked into my ear, "Are you okay?"

I just nodded into his sweater, still shaking hard from the cold. He pulled back a little and a warm hand touched my cheek.

"God, you're freezing. Come on. I'm taking you home with me."

"No, wait!" I could hardly talk, my teeth were chattering so hard.

"You need to get warm."

"I know. I just meant wait a minute. I need to tell this guy who I am." I turned my head to see the man in the black suit as he inched my way, one freezing guest at a time.

"Okay." Eric went back to rubbing my back and I went back to nuzzling his sweater until it was my turn to give my name.

"This is Sookie Stackhouse," Eric said to the man as he wrote into his notebook.

"Room number?"

"Four twenty," I added as I turned to face him, keeping an ear pressed into Eric's warm sweater.

"She's going home with me. She's a friend of mine. Do you need my information?"

"Ma'am, is this man a friend of yours?"

"Yes. His name's Eric Northman."

"Do you need my number? Address?" Eric asked.

"No, that's fine. You can call the hotel later tonight or in the morning and we should have information on our status. I apologize for the inconvenience."

"That's okay, thanks," I said.

"Goodnight," Eric added before steering me away from the building and up the block.

I pulled the coat tighter around me, missing the warmth of Eric's body as we hurried up the sidewalk and around the corner. Eric hailed a cab and I climbed in, grateful to be able to sit in a nice warm car.

"Eighty-first and Columbus. And could you please turn up the heat?" Eric asked the cab driver.

I scrunched as close to Eric's body as I could get and he wrapped both arms around me. My face found his sweater again as we rode in silence to Eric's apartment. It all felt like a dream.


	4. Chapter 4

By the time we got to Eric's apartment building, I was no longer shivering uncontrollably. We climbed four flights of stairs and he unlocked his door and flipped on the light, revealing a small and very neat apartment. The living room had a teal love seat and two brown tweed chairs and I could see a small modern kitchen to the right. Eric left me standing in the living room while he disappeared into the bathroom and turned on the water.

"We're going to get you into a nice hot bath," he said with a smile as he emerged from the bathroom.

"Thanks."

I sat on the sofa and Eric knelt at my feet, removing my leather boots. He sat beside me and swung my legs to face him, placing my cold bare feet under his sweater, against his stomach.

I made sure the trench coat covered me as my legs were elevated onto the sofa and I faced Eric.

"I read somewhere that this is what to do to prevent frostbite. God, your toes are cold."

"Your stomach is so warm." I wiggled my toes and he laughed a little.

While we waited for the tub to fill, I told Eric the story of waking to the alarm and being drenched by the sprinklers.

"How long are you in town?" he asked.

"A few days."

"Business or pleasure."

"I've never seen the city. Pleasure."

"That's great. Do you need to call anybody—let 'em know you're okay?"

"No. Thanks though."

Eric removed my now slightly warmer feet from his stomach and stepped into the bathroom.

"I think you're all set in here," he called out as I heard the water shut off.

I stood and removed the trench coat. Eric stepped out of the bathroom and took it from me, hanging it on a coat rack by the door.

I covered my chest with my arms self-consciously and went into the bathroom.

As I turned to close the door, I saw him looking at me and I felt myself blush.

"I'll get you something warm to put on. Let me know if you need anything else."

"Thanks." I closed the door. I debated about locking it, and decided it would seem rude. He would probably be able to hear that.

I pulled my gown over my head and hung it on the shower rod above me. There was a little shelf by the sink with a hair brush and a ceramic bowl that held covered rubber bands, so I helped myself to a rubber band, pulling my damp hair into a knot on top of my head.

I lowered myself into the tub, my entire body responding to the warmth. I sank into the water up to my chin and said a silent thank you for my rescuer as I lay there in the deliciously hot water.

After a few minutes, there was a gentle tapping at the door.

"Yes?" I pulled my knees to my chest and sat up, covering myself as best I could.

"I've brought you some clothes," he said from outside the door.

"Come in."

Eric didn't look at me, but stepped towards the toilet, lowering the lid and placing a stack of clothes on it.

"Hope these work for you. There are clean towels in the cabinet under the sink, and I'm pretty sure there's a new toothbrush in the little drawer on the right." He never looked my way, but spoke from the doorway with his back to me.

"Thanks."

He closed the door behind him and I relaxed back into the water.

Once I was completely warm again, I got out of the tub and found a towel under the sink. I pulled on Eric's sweat pants, long sleeved t-shirt and white athletic socks. I rolled the sleeves up a little and brushed my hair out, returning my rubber band to the ceramic bowl.

There was a new toothbrush where Eric said it would be and the toothpaste was in the medicine cabinet. A blow dryer hung on a hook on the side of the cabinet, and I dried my hair, relishing the warm air on my head.

When I came out of the bathroom warm and dry, Eric was sitting on the sofa in a pair of drawstring navy flannel pants and a black tank top and I swallowed hard at the sheer beauty of him. He stood and handed me one of the two steaming cups that had been sitting on the coffee table.

"It's chamomile. I hope that's okay."

"Thank you."

I took a sip and sat on the sofa, pulling my feet up to sit on them. Eric sat beside me and reached for his own cup of tea.

"Feeling better?" he asked sweetly.

"Much, thanks. I can't get over the fact that you found me there on the sidewalk. Thank you so much for bringing me here."

"Of course. I was just on my way home from having a drink with some friends and saw the commotion from across the street. Then I couldn't believe I saw you there. What are the odds?"

"Yeah, what are the odds?" I looked around the apartment, wondering how many beds Eric had and what our sleeping arrangements might be. "I like your place."

"Thanks. It's not much. Just a one bedroom."

Well, that answered that question. One bed. Two people.

"Oh. I guess I expected it to be bigger." And then as an afterthought, "I know what your rate is."

He smiled. "Oh, right. Well, I've lived here for years, and sock my money away. I could have a bigger place, of course, but I really want to buy a house in L.A."

"You do?" I wasn't expecting that.

"Yeah. Do you know where Lafayette Square is?"

"No."

"It's this little pocket of old mansions in the middle of the city—a historic preservation zone. I want to buy one and renovate it."

"Really?"

"Yeah, I love the old architecture in Los Angeles—especially from around the 20s and 30s. Some of the houses in that area haven't been touched since they were built and are ripe for the renovating. I've always wanted to do that."

"That's great. I'll have to check it out."

"You should. The houses are really amazing. I know I've picked the briefest possible career, and my really big contracts are most likely behind me, so I'm saving my pennies and making hay while the sun shines. Then, I'll probably move to L.A. and open a business, or maybe buy one."

"You don't like New York?"

"I love New York, and I'll always keep a place here, but I'd really like to live in Los Angeles in one of those houses. Once you see the neighborhood, you'll see what I mean. So, where do you live?"

"Hollywood. I've been in the same little single since I moved there almost five years ago. I'm saving my money too."

Eric smiled and I felt a little jump of my heart. His eyes twinkled when he smiled.

"So, what's your dream? What are you saving for?"

"I want to own my own runway agency."

"Really? That's great."

"I'd really love to buy into Sam's agency or at least just buy the runway division. I've built the runway department from the ground up and really love it, but I want to own it too." For some reason, I had opened up to Eric and may have said too much, so I added, "Please don't say anything to anyone. I haven't even talked to Sam about it."

"Don't worry, I won't. I have no doubt that you'll get what you want someday."

"Thanks."

"What will you call it?"

"Runway."

"I like it."

We'd finished our tea, but I was having such a good time talking to Eric, I didn't want the night to end. He was such great company. We talked about so many things—where we grew up, how we started our careers. He was easy to talk to and made me laugh. It wasn't until I caught him yawning that it dawned on me to ask about the time.

"I'm not sure," he answered. Eric took the cups into the kitchen and said, "It's almost three." Apparently the clock was in the kitchen.

"God, I'm sorry I've kept you up so late."

"That's okay."

"Do you have a blanket or something?"

"You're sleeping in the bed. I'll get a pillow and a blanket and sleep out here."

"Oh, no, really, I'm happy to take the sofa."

"It's not negotiable." Eric took me by the hand and the contact gave me a little rush. He led me into the next room, and turned on a lamp on a nightstand by the bed. He let my hand go as I sat on the bed and he opened the closet. He reached up to get a blanket and a pillow and I stared at his perfect behind in those flannel pants.

"Do you need anything else?" He turned around and almost caught me ogling him.

"No, I'm good."

He stepped forward and bent down to give me a soft chaste kiss on the lips. "Good night, then"

"Night."

He closed the door behind him and I pulled the covers back and climbed into the bed that smelled like Eric. I turned the light off and listened to my breathing which had sped up just a touch from the kiss, innocent as it was. There was no denying that my crush had turned into full-on lust for the man. Yes, he was gorgeous, but I'd also learned that he was sweet and thoughtful and interesting and funny. I was in trouble.

I tried so hard to fall asleep, but my mind was reeling from the events of the night. Just as I started to relax, I realized that I needed to use the bathroom, so I got up and tiptoed into the next room. The lights were out and I assumed that Eric was asleep as I found my way into the bathroom.

When I was through, I made sure to turn off the light before opening the door so I wouldn't disturb Eric. I stood in the dark living room for a minute for my eyes to adjust to the dark again. I could see Eric curled into what looked like an uncomfortable position on the love seat that was much too short to accommodate his long frame.

My eyes scanned his body from his feet up to his face, and I was startled when I realized that his eyes were open and he was looking at me. I inhaled sharply.

"Are you okay?" he whispered. "You need anything?"

"I thought you were asleep."

"No."

I walked towards the sofa and crouched down beside Eric. "I want you to come and sleep with me."

He stared at me for a beat before asking, "Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"I should probably explain something to you, Sookie. I'm very attracted to you, and even though it's sweet for you to want me to be comfortable in my bed, it would be very difficult for me to sleep with you and keep my hands to myself."

"I don't want you to keep your hands to yourself."

Eric pushed his blanket back and sat up. I took him by the hand and led him into the bedroom. It was dark, but I could see clearly enough to note his erection and felt myself get wet.

I got into bed and Eric climbed in with me. His mouth was on mine in an instant as he held me in his arms and our bodies melted together perfectly.

At first, we just kissed, our tongues exploring and our arms holding each other. I was reminded of the perfect kiss in the dark theater in L.A. and instinctively pressed myself closer until I felt his erection against me. I loved that feeling and let him know with a soft moan.

That seemed to ignite a little fire in him and his hand pushed my t-shirt up, finding a breast to caress. I pressed harder into him and his mouth left mine and covered my nipple, sucking strongly. I stopped pressing and just blatantly rubbed myself against his erection. My shirt went over my head and I rolled onto my back, giving Eric better access to both breasts. I spread my legs and wrapped them around Eric as we both rocked into each other. I had never wanted a man more in my life.

My hands began pulling on Eric's tank top and he sat up for a minute to pull his shirt over his head. I untied the drawstring of his pants and pulled them down along with his underwear. He was untangling his legs and feet from his pants while I grabbed onto his absolutely perfect male appendage. I wanted to study it, put it in my mouth, but before I could, I was pushed back onto the bed, and Eric was pulling my sweat pants down and then his tongue was on me and in me and I was whimpering and moaning in pleasure.

Eric raised my butt a little off of the bed for better access and ate me hungrily, holding me up with both hands. I shamelessly humped his mouth and grabbed his hair and didn't even recognize my own voice as I heard myself say, "Please fuck me, Eric."

Suddenly, he was gone; the tongue was gone, and I cried out at the loss of sensation. I sat up a little on my elbows to see what had happened and Eric was on his knees, rolling on a condom. He roughly pulled on one of my thighs to bring me a little closer to him and fell forward onto my body, one hand expertly guiding him into me.

We both grunted as he entered me and I was shocked at the size of him. I hadn't had sex in years and wondered if I had somehow magically regained my virgin status or if he was just that big. I held onto his perfect behind and pulled him to me as he sank deeper and deeper with each thrust.

Once he was all the way in, he held still for a moment before pumping me--slowly at first, and then the speed increased a little. I think I said "yes" or maybe "god" or something, but I'm not quite sure. I knew I was close and closed my eyes and gripped his ass a little tighter as I felt myself going over the edge.

I said, "I'm coming," through gritted teeth just to make sure he knew he could as well, and he responded with forceful thrusts and deep grunts into my neck that could only mean he was coming right along with me.

Once we were both still, I let go of his butt and brought my hands up to his back to hold him. He kissed my neck and then lifted his head to kiss my mouth. We were both breathing heavily. His kisses trailed back down my neck until he rested his head there and just said, "oh my god," into my skin.

Eric pulled out and got up. He left the room, I assumed to dispose of the condom, and I pulled the covers over me, not bothering to move the items of clothing in the bed with me. I laughed to myself when I realized I was still wearing one of Eric's socks. I felt like a bag of wet noodles, completely exhausted and sated.

Eric got back into bed and I draped a leg over him and lifted my head onto his chest, unable to speak or move any more. I used the last of my seriously depleted energy to kiss his chest and felt his arm pull me a little closer. And that's the last thing I remember about the night.


	5. Chapter 5

I woke to the aroma of coffee and couldn't remember where I was for a brief instant. I stirred in the bed and my sore muscles brought back memories of seriously misbehaving with Eric mere hours earlier. I had been out of my mind and hardly recognized my actions as my own. I had begged him to have sex with me. _Begged_ him.

I sincerely doubted if I was the first woman to beg for Eric's sexual attentions, but it had certainly been a first for me. I had only slept with one guy and that was my boyfriend, Bill, in college. I liked sex, but I couldn't even call what I'd done with Eric sex. It was so much…I don't know…_better._ I'd had no idea it could feel that good. And I had no idea I could lose control like that. It scared me more than a little.

I got out of bed, pulled on the robe lying across the foot of it that hadn't been there the night before, and shuffled into the living room in my one sock, but there was no sign of Eric. I used the bathroom and followed the scent of coffee into the kitchen. There was an empty cup on the counter beside the coffee maker and a note beside the cup.

Sookie,

It was hard to leave you this morning, but I have to be at a shoot at 9. I didn't want to wake you.

Please make yourself at home. There's food in the fridge, money in the top drawer of my desk, take-out menus in the drawer beside the fridge.

I'll call you when I get a break. I should be finished around 3 or 4.

E.

There was a phone number across the bottom of the page after the word "cell."

I poured myself a cup of coffee and found the half and half in the refrigerator. I looked at the clock sitting on the counter: 9:20. I felt like I had a hangover even though I'd had nothing alcoholic to drink. I had a random-insanely-horny-sex-with-a-virtual-stranger hangover.

I fixed myself a bowl of cereal and sat on the sofa, suddenly ravenously hungry. I wondered if the hotel was all back in order. I thought of my open suitcase sitting on the luggage rack at the foot of the bed and wondered if I had a dry item of clothing to my name.

So much for my great New York vacation. I was embarrassed at my behavior with Eric. What must he think of me, I wondered. Would he think I did that sort of thing with other men? And was he in the habit of bringing women home and just banging them until they ran out of steam and keeled over? Probably.

I had no delusions that last night was anything but meaningless sex for someone like Eric Northman. He was a supermodel, for crying out loud. What was I doing here in his apartment? I should be at home in L.A. working on building runway clients and saving my money. I needed to come back down to earth—to the real world. No, I couldn't un-do what I'd done the night before, but I could certainly promise myself never to repeat it.

I finished my cereal and coffee and washed my dishes in the sink. Then I made the bed and donned my lovely sweat pants and t-shirt outfit from the night before. (I'd found the pants under the covers near the foot of the bed.) I folded Eric's discarded clothes and robe and left them on the bed.

I debated for a minute about taking the trench coat instead of my sweats and t-shirt. It might look slightly less clownish, but I knew Eric would most likely need the trench coat and could probably live without the other items. I found the other sock and pulled my boots on that Eric had set beside one of the chairs in the living room.

I sat at Eric's desk in his bedroom and opened the top drawer. It felt awfully intrusive, but I couldn't get back to the hotel without money. I found an envelope with lots of twenties and a few hundreds in it, and took out a twenty.

I thought of writing Eric a note. I wanted to thank him for taking care of me, for his hospitality, for getting me warm, but no matter how I worded it, it sounded dirty. Everything he'd done for me at the start of the night was overshadowed by the mindless humping and begging that took place later. I blushed just thinking about it sitting there by myself.

I finally opted to say nothing and to just leave and take what was left of my dignity with me.

When I got out into the hallway, I checked to make sure Eric's door was locked after I'd closed it behind me. Of course, it was in that moment that I remembered I'd left my night gown hanging in the bathroom. Oh well. It was a pity—that was a favorite.

Once downstairs, I walked to Columbus Avenue and hailed a cab back to The Waldorf.

The hotel seemed to be back in perfect working order and I waited in line at the front desk, extremely uncomfortable in my unusual outfit, clutching the change from my twenty-dollar bill in my hand.

When it was my turn, I spoke to the woman behind the desk. "I'm Sookie Stackhouse, room 420. I spent the night with a friend after the…um…incident last night. Can I get back into my room? I don't have a key."

"Of course. Do you have any ID with you?"

"No, it's in my purse in the room."

"That's fine. Please wait one moment." She typed something into the keyboard in front of her and looked back up to me. "Of course, we'll launder any of your clothes that got wet free of charge. Just let us know if there's anything else you need."

"Thank you."

I stood there for a minute and the woman just smiled at me. I wondered what I was waiting for and then a man appeared beside me. He reached across the desk as the woman produced a key card and a sheet of paper she pulled from the printer beneath the desk.

"This is Mr. Dearborn with security. He'll escort you to your room."

"Thanks."

Mr. Dearborn and I walked in silence to the elevator and then once on the fourth floor, down the hall to my room. When we got inside the room, I fished my wallet out of my still-damp purse and showed him my ID.

"Thank you, Ms. Stackhouse. Please let us know what we can do to make your stay more comfortable. We apologize for the inconvenience."

I put my ID and money I'd had in my hand into my wallet, and handed Mr. Dearborn a five-dollar bill. I'd never stayed in a fancy hotel before and didn't know if it was customary to tip security people.

He just looked at my extended hand. "That isn't necessary, but thank you anyway."

"Oh, okay." I stuck it into my purse, embarrassed at my faux pas.

I walked Mr. Dearborn to the door, then went to the bed and sat down. The room appeared to be clean and dry. The bed was freshly made. I touched the carpet and it felt dry. I opened the suitcase at the foot of the bed and groaned. Everything in it was wet. I dug through it to the bottom and even the socks and panties underneath the clothes were damp. Yuck.

I opened the closet and there hung my only dry item of clothing—my peacoat. Suddenly, I was too overwhelmed to think about what to do. If I sent all my clothes to the hotel's laundry, I'd be stuck in the room all day waiting for something to wear.

I was so tired and disappointed in my big New York vacation. All I wanted was for it to be over. I had embarrassed myself with Eric, had no clothes to wear, was too tired to think and before I knew it, the tears started. I lay back onto the bed and let it all out, feeling sorry for myself and wallowing in it like a big baby.

When I was all through, I fished my damp e-ticket out of my purse and called the airline's 800 number to see about changing my flight. I just wanted to go home.


	6. Chapter 6

I was back in my own bed the night after the New York fiasco. The Waldorf let me cancel the rest of my nights and even comped me the first one with an apology. I got a few stares in the airport at my outfit, but was too miserable to care. The Supershuttle dropped me at home, and I dumped the contents of my purse and suitcase into the bathtub to be dealt with later before opening my sofa bed and crawling between my nice soft sheets.

I slept for twelve solid hours and then spent much of the next day in the laundry room trying to salvage my wet clothes. Some of my white panties were pink from being beside my red ones, but other than that, there didn't seem to be any real serious damage. The damage to my psyche was another matter.

On Friday night, I made the decision to just try and forget about my ridiculous behavior with Eric. I sat and stared at the stack of his clothes I had laundered and placed on my sofa and wondered how I'd get them back to him. Plus, I owed him twenty dollars. I could give everything to Pam, but then she'd want an explanation and I really didn't want to have to give her one. There wasn't one. I'd lost my mind for a night.

The thought of ever having to see Eric again to give him his clothes was too much. I would never be able to face him again after the way I'd acted. I put the clothes into my dresser drawer and felt my eyes sting with tears. I just stood there and cried for a minute. I felt so horrible for what I'd done. Then I realized I was also crying because I had feelings for Eric. I missed him and craved him and knew I'd never be able to have any kind of satisfaction for those feelings. He wasn't someone I could have and that knowledge made me miserable.

I went to bed and told myself that this was the last night I'd think about Eric Northman.

I decided not to tell anyone that I'd come home early. I didn't want to have to explain myself. I wasn't really certain how to explain myself to myself, so I didn't trust myself to do a proper job with other people.

When Monday morning arrived, I went into the office and did a splendid job of lying about my New York vacation and what a wonderful time I'd had. I was able to keep up the charade of my good mood until I sat at my desk and found three messages to call Eric Northman. I shredded them. I just wanted to forget the whole thing.

At the end of the day, Sam called me into his office.

"I'm selling the runway division," he began and my heart started to race.

"How much?"

He looked surprised. "Um…a hundred and fifty thousand. I know this is a surprise, but I've actually been considering it for awhile. I want to expand and open a theatrical division, but lack enough capital to do it. Selling the runway division, my least profitable one, just makes sense. Hopefully, whoever buys it will recognize what an asset you are and keep you on, but I don't want you to worry. You'll always have a job with me if you want it. You can book print if you want."

"I love doing the shows."

"I know you do. I just want you to feel secure."

I felt about as insecure as possible. A hundred and fifty thousand dollars. I had sixty-four thousand in the bank. That was it.

"Thanks, Sam. Keep me posted. Any offers yet?"

"No. I'll let you know."

"Okay."

I left the office feeling very shaky. My dream to own the runway division looked like it was about to go up in smoke. Once it was sold to someone else, I knew my career path wouldn't be the one I'd hoped for. I could possibly stay and work for someone else, but without the possibility of owning the agency in my future, I couldn't imagine being as happy with my job. I could book print and keep working for Sam, but it wasn't what my heart was set on.

I ate dinner and changed clothes to meet Pam for a drink at The Standard. I knew she'd want to hear all about my trip and I was armed with the same vague story I'd told everybody at work when I walked into the bar. I just hoped and prayed that her brother wasn't the kind of guy to boink and tell or I was sunk.

"So, how was it?" she beamed at me as I found her at a table, already flanked by two handsome guys.

"Great! Loved it!" I sat down and introduced myself to the two guys drooling over Pam.

"Really? I want to hear all about it."

"Sure, in just a minute. I think I'll get myself a drink first."

I went up to the bar to order something and heard my name.

"Sookie!"

I turned around and saw John Quinn smiling down at me. I never thought about it before, but he was the same height as Eric. Okay, I needed to stop thinking about Eric.

"Quinn! How nice to see you."

I let Quinn buy my drink and he joined our table, which was fine. It kept the focus of conversation off of my trip. He tended to talk about himself a lot.

If Pam suspected anything about me and Eric, she never let on. By the end of the night, Quinn had asked me to dinner on Saturday and I couldn't think of a reason to say no, so I said yes.

All day Saturday, I thought about what a better match Quinn was for me, and that I should be happy that he was still interested. He wasn't some superstar living across the country. He was just a regular guy with his own business and a condo in West Hollywood and probably a reasonable future—the kind of guy I should be with.

Dinner went well on Saturday, and we did some kissing on my sofa before he left. No, of course, it was nothing like kissing Eric. Kissing Eric felt like being in a tornado; kissing Quinn was more like a little rain shower. It was fine.

On Monday morning, Pam came into the office and asked me how my weekend had gone.

"Fine. No big deal."

"So, are you seeing q-tip head again?"

"Yeah, I guess I am."

She looked like she wanted to say something, but stopped herself. Then she went on. "Are you happy with him?"

"Yeah." Could she tell I was lying? Was I lying? I couldn't tell myself anymore.

She stared at me again.

Finally, I just asked her, "Is there something you want to say?"

"Has anything happened between you and my brother?"

Shit. I looked down at my desk, wondering what he'd told her. "I guess so."

She waited.

I went on. "Yeah, something happened, but it was a mistake."

"And now you're seeing Quinn again?"

"Yeah. I'm seeing Quinn." I hoped that would end the conversation, and it did.

I spent some time during the week crunching numbers and trying to figure out how I could borrow the rest of the money to buy the agency. I knew how much money the agency made and could figure out the expenses pretty easily. My salary was the biggest expense. I assumed that Sam would charge me rent if I stayed in the same office. Or I'd have to lease a new space. Every time I ran the numbers, it seemed that Sam's asking price was a fair one.

Quinn and I were having dinner again on Thursday night when I told him about my plan to buy the agency.

"How much do you have?"

"Sixty-four thousand."

"Babe, no bank is going to loan you the rest of that wad. You don't earn enough money to qualify for that kind of loan."

"Really? You don't think so?"

"I know so. Believe me. I'm a business owner. I know how much you could borrow and it won't be close to enough."

"Maybe I could find a partner…"

"Well, don't look at me. The last thing I want to be is the owner of a dinky little modeling agency."

Later that night, while we were kissing on my sofa, Quinn put his hands on my breasts for the first time. I didn't really mind and tried not to think about how I felt when Eric had done it.

"I was thinking," Quinn began into my neck as he was squeezing my breasts. My bra was pushed up above them, the underwires digging uncomfortably into my armpits. "Maybe on Saturday, we should get away. Go somewhere romantic. Seal the deal. Know what I'm saying?"

I eyed the bulge in his pants and knew what he was saying.

"Where did you want to go?" I asked.

"How about Santa Barbara?"

"I've never been."

"Oh, you'll love it. We can get a room with a beach view. I think it's time we took things to the next level, don't you?"

Quinn looked me in the eye and kissed me before I could give him an answer.

So, Friday morning I woke up looking forward to leaving for Santa Barbara the following day. I was ready to sleep with Quinn, hoping that it would help me to let Eric go. I thought about Eric all the time, and knew it was ridiculous. I hoped that "sealing the deal" with Quinn would put those thoughts to rest once and for all.

I went to work in a decent mood, considering how disappointed I was about not being able to buy the agency. At least I had Santa Barbara to look forward to. But then all that changed just before lunch when Sam called me into his office.


	7. Chapter 7

I sat in the chair across from Sam's desk waiting to hear what he wanted to say to me.

"I've had an offer on the runway division."

I tried to smile, seem happy for him. "Great! Did you get what you want?"

"Close to it. I have three days to accept it or make a counter offer."

"Well, congratulations."

"The good news is you'll most likely be kept on as the booker. The buyer's a businessman who knows nothing about modeling and just wants it as an investment."

"Well, that's good. So, he's not in the business?"

"No. He's an events planner. Name's John Quinn."

My blood ran cold. "Quinn?"

"Yeah, you know him?"

"Yeah, I do." I stood to leave, my heart racing. "So, keep me posted, Sam."

"Will do."

I held it together until I was at lunch with Pam about an hour later. Fortunately, we were sitting at a table in the corner of Doughboys and my back was to the room when I started crying.

"Sookie, what on earth is wrong?"

"I'm sorry, Pam. I'm just having a bad day. I probably shouldn't tell you this, but I found out today that Quinn is buying the runway division of Merlotte's."

"Really? I didn't know it was for sale."

"Yeah."

"So, you don't want to work for him?"

"It's not that. I've always wanted to buy it, but I don't have enough money. I confided in Quinn about it and he went behind my back and made an offer on it after he told me he had no interest in it. He told me I would never qualify for the loan, and now I'm wondering if that's even true."

"Motherfucker. So, he's screwing you both literally and figuratively."

"No, not literally. At least not yet. We're going to Santa Barbara tomorrow for our first time." I made little air quotes when I said "first time."

"Oh." She wrinkled her nose.

"I'm sure you think I'm a big tramp, but that was just a mistake."

"What?"

"Never mind." I shook my head, needing the subject to change.

"So, even though q-tip's buying the agency out from under you, you're still going to let him…you know…get under you?"

"I don't know. I guess so. I'm so confused."

"It's okay. It'll be okay."

Seeing Pam's look of pity made me tear up again, but when she squeezed my hand across the table, I felt a little better.

The afternoon passed without incident. As I was leaving the office, I had a text from Pam: Come to the show tonight. It'll cheer you up.

I knew she was right. I loved watching my models in action. It made me so proud. I texted back: Good idea. See you there.

I sat in my front row seat at the theater in The Mart and watched as my girls strutted down the ramp. Pam gave me a wink once as she went by in a crimson sequined body suit that only Pam could pull off. After the show, I went backstage and congratulated the girls and Sophie-Anne on a great show.

I exited from backstage into the lobby. I was almost to the outside door when I suddenly felt like I needed to go back. Maybe I was just thinking about that night that I'd gone back and kissed Eric. It made me feel sad.

I knew it made no sense, but I thought it might make me feel better somehow to go back and have a last look at the theater. I turned around and headed back through the last of the people leaving, and as I entered the theater, I saw him sitting on the ramp, back lit just like he'd been on that first night.

"Hi," he said. He didn't seem surprised to see me.

"Hi. I didn't know you were in town."

He hopped off the stage and sat in a seat, patting the one beside him. I sat in it, very much aware of how close our bodies were to each other.

"Looking at a house. Lafayette Square."

"Oh, that's great. Are you going to buy it?"

"Maybe. It's a nice one."

He looked away as if he were trying to decide what to say next.

"Pam tells me your boyfriend is buying the agency."

"Apparently."

"And do you still want it?"

"Yeah, but I don't have enough money."

"Would you if you had a partner?"

He looked me in the eye and my heart stopped. There was a long silence as I tried to decide what to say.

"I need to lock up," Sophie-Anne said from somewhere in the dark behind us.

We both stood up. "Right. Sorry," I called out as Eric and I headed for the doors. "Good night," I called back to her as we left.

Eric walked me out to my car as I explained how much Sam was asking for the agency and how much I had. I told him that Quinn didn't think I could qualify for a loan, but that I hadn't actually applied for one.

We stood beside my car for a minute before he said, "Can I follow you to your apartment? I'd like to talk about this some more, if that's okay. I mean, unless you have to be somewhere…"

"No. No, I don't. That's fine." I gave him the address and directions and waited for him in front of my building while he parked.

Eric was sitting on my sofa studying the papers I'd drawn up to calculate the expenses of the agency and profitability. I offered him a beer, but he asked for coffee instead. We spent over an hour discussing the purchase of what I hoped would be called Runway. I tried not to get my hopes too high, but the prospect of being able to really buy the agency was getting me very excited. Being in the room with Eric Northman may have had something to do with that as well. In the end, Eric offered to put in the cash I lacked.

"You can either keep me on as a partner or you can get a loan and pay me back. I think Quinn is mistaken about your ability to borrow the money, but the immediate problem is that Sam is probably going to counter Quinn's offer or maybe just accept it as it is, so you don't have time to get a loan right now."

"But what about the house in Lafayette Square? Won't you need that cash for the house? I mean, if it's the one you want to buy."

"Don't worry about that. The good news is that I have enough that's liquid at the moment because I was ready to open escrow on the house. I can write a check to Sam and he can cash it on Monday. How about you?"

"Yeah, mine's in cash too. Just in a savings account."

"Great. So, should we call Sam?"

My heart raced at the possibility of being able to buy the agency. It seemed too good to be true.

"Wait. Eric, why are you doing this?"

"I know what this means to you and how hard you've worked. I don't want to see you lose out because of lousy timing. Or because your boyfriend's a dick." Eric looked away for a second. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that."

"It's okay."

"I hope you won't let what transpired between us personally affect your decision. We can talk about that. In fact we should. But, all personal feelings aside, I think this is a good business decision. Honestly, I'd like to stay on as a partner, but I'll leave that up to you. What do you think?"

I took a deep breath and knew exactly what I wanted to do. "Let's call Sam."


	8. Chapter 8

I sat on Sookie Stackhouse's sofa and watched her on the phone with Sam Merlotte, wondering if I'd lost my mind. Was I making a huge mistake going into business with her? At the very least, I was loaning her money, and I was very possibly becoming her business partner.

Logically, I should have nothing to do with her, but I couldn't be logical when it came to Sookie.

I'd suspected she'd eventually have me wrapped around her little finger before I even met her. My sister, Pam, talked about her all the time—about what a smart girl she was, how young she was to be such a good agent. Sookie was bright, funny, sweet, honest. Then, I saw a picture of her and thought she must be something to get all those adjectives before she got beautiful, because at first glance, her beauty was what really stood out.

I assumed that Pam was in love with her until the day she said she thought I should marry Sookie.

"Marry her? I've never even met her!"

"Well, that's easily changed if that's your only objection. Trust me, brother, she's perfect for you."

I wasn't exactly the kind of guy to chase a girl. Girls generally chased me. But, I had to admit that Sookie piqued my interest. I'd never seen Pam so taken with anyone before and if Sookie looked half as good in person as she did in the pictures my sister sent me then I knew I'd be pretty happy to finally meet her.

I never let on to Pam that I thought she might be right about me and Sookie. She was my sister, and almost always right about everything. And it killed me to admit that.

So, when I went to L.A. for the occasional job, I casually stopped by Merlotte's to say hello to the agents, hoping to meet Sookie. The first time, she was out picking up lunch. The second time, she'd left early to go see one of her fashion shows. I hadn't even spoken to her on the phone because she booked shows and I always did print in L.A.

Once I sat for hours at a party at Pam's friend, Thalia's, waiting for the elusive Miss Stackhouse to show up. I saw Pam step outside onto the patio and watched her text someone. She came back into Thalia's kitchen and said, "She's not coming. Has a cold."

"Who?"

Pam just rolled her eyes. I tried not to look like I cared.

Since Pam had decided to whore me out to Merlotte's in exchange for their taking her on for print, I'd spent more and more time in Los Angeles. Modeling rates in L.A. were lower than New York, but I enjoyed working there anyway. I really liked just spending time in L.A. in general.

The L.A. show rate really sucked. I knew this because it was how Pam made most of her living. Pam wouldn't get rich doing shows in L.A., but she loved them and loved living there and I admired her for choosing to do what she wanted rather than what would make her the most money. I had plenty of money if she needed it, and occasionally she had. No big deal.

I mentioned to Sam one day that I'd like to do a show sometime with my sister just for fun—I didn't care about the rate. So he booked me on a Calvin Klein show at The Mart one night. I hoped that meant I'd be dealing with Sookie, but it was Sam who gave me my booking information on the phone.

Pam came through for me though. She made sure Sookie would be at the show and made sure I knew about it. I acted nonchalant with Pam, but was very much looking forward to finally meeting this dream girl that Pam had been pushing on me for years.

I saw Sookie backstage before the show talking to some of the models and yes, she was as gorgeous in person as she was in her pictures. She had a sweetness about her—she seemed so open and…I don't know…just genuine. I could see why Pam was so taken with her and I didn't even know her yet.

She spotted me in the makeup chair and I gave her a smile. I hoped she'd come over to introduce herself, but she seemed to disappear into the hubbub backstage.

As soon as I walked down the ramp, I spotted her blonde hair in the audience. It was the same color as mine, but she had a lot more of it. Again, I smiled, and this time, I got one in return and I almost forgot where I was. I nearly laughed at myself on stage for being so affected by her smile.

It became a part of the show for me—smiling at Sookie and getting her to smile back. It was as if we were the only two people in the room and I wasn't walking down a runway in front of a room full of people.

As soon as the show was over, I got a call from my friend, Maxwell Lee, who wanted to get together. I told him I wasn't sure if I was free but I'd call him back if I was. I wanted to talk to Pam—find out if she had plans with Sookie that I could horn in on.

By the time I got off the phone, Pam seemed to have vanished. I texted her to find out her plans and found the men's room while I waited for her reply. I headed back to the backstage area, but everyone had left, including Pam. On my way out, I peeked into the house from stage right and saw Sookie's unmistakable head of blonde hair walking through the dark house.

I stepped out onto the stage and walked towards her as she crawled around on the floor near where she'd been sitting. I was mesmerized by her spectacular ass as she was on all fours. I had an instant fantasy of jumping down onto the floor and misbehaving with her, but snapped out of it and instead introduced myself. When she looked up at me, I felt like a teenager with a full-on crush.

All coherent thought left my hormonal brain as I jumped off the stage and landed a little too close to her. I got a whiff of her perfume or hair spray or laundry detergent—who the hell knows what it was, but suddenly, I couldn't speak and I just kissed her.

I had never in my life kissed a woman at first meeting, of course, and don't really know what I expected—maybe a slap? At the very least, a push away. What I got instead was the hottest, most sexually arousing response I'd ever encountered. We were two strangers in a dark room. She was a woman I had coveted like a fan for years. It was just an insane moment and I went with it, kissing her with all I had. For one unbelievable instant, I thought I might fuck her against the stage, but then I was broken from her spell by the show coordinator asking us to leave.

I almost burst out laughing at how ridiculous the whole incident had been. I wanted to apologize—start over, ask Sookie out, try to explain myself somehow. But, she was out the door and running away from me. I started to follow her but the show coordinator stopped me to chat and thank me for the show. I said a polite but brief "you're welcome," but the conversation slowed me down and by the time I got out the front door, Sookie was driving away.

I drove to Pam's apartment. She rented half a duplex in Hancock Park. It was just a little one-bedroom, but I loved it. I had a thing for old buildings, and Pam's duplex was built in 1929 and hadn't been ruined by some bozo updating it in bad taste. I'd once considered buying an old house in Pam's neighborhood just because I loved the house so much and had just happened to see it at an open house.

In talking to the realtor, however, I discovered some other old neighborhoods and fell in love with one in particular. I decided then that I would buy a house someday in Lafayette Square. I was just waiting for the right one and saving my money.

Pam finally texted me back and said she was spending the night with her girlfriend, Amelia, who was staying at The Biltmore Hotel downtown. I debated for a second about calling Maxwell Lee back to have a drink, but then opted instead to just go to bed early. I had an early flight back to New York the next morning.

When I got back to New York, I wasn't sure what I wanted to do about Sookie Stackhouse. I didn't particularly want to call her at her office. That seemed so impersonal. I definitely wanted to see her again, but wasn't sure when I'd be able to get back to L.A. I was booked all week on a catalog shoot.

On Sunday night, I started a text to Pam to ask for Sookie's cell phone number, but deleted it. That felt like cheating. Plus I didn't want Pam to have too much information to give me shit about.

I was pissed that I'd handled my first meeting with Sookie so stupidly. What kind of a bonehead just kisses a woman and then watches her run away? When it came to Sookie, I was clearly fucked up.

I made the decision to try to get back to L.A. as soon as possible and just go into the agency to talk to her in person. I'd ask for her number, ask her on a date, act like a respectable guy.

I felt more in control once I'd made my decision, but then all that flew right out the window the night of The Waldorf fire when I saw Sookie on the street. That night was one for the record books.


	9. Chapter 9

Wednesday night after dinner, I went down to mid-town to meet my fiends, Clancy and Felicia, for a drink. They were both model friends of mine that I'd known for years and had been dating for almost as long as I'd known them. When our drinks arrived, Clancy announced that he and Felicia were getting married.

I wasn't really all that surprised—they were a very tight couple, but what did surprise me was the little stab of jealousy that I felt and an image of Sookie Stackhouse and me living happily ever after in a big old house in L.A. I immediately pushed the thought away and focused on Felicia and Clancy's news.

After saying goodnight to the happy couple, I decided to walk a bit to clear my head. I cursed Pam for planting the idea of my marrying Sookie in there in the first place. It was ridiculous to even think about. I didn't even know the woman. But Pam certainly did and Pam knew me better than anyone else. Yes, on paper Sookie was perfect and yes, our first encounter was the stuff sexual fantasies are made of, but in reality, she lived on the other coast and probably thought I was some kind of horny molester.

I was distracted from my thoughts by people running ahead of me and around the corner. I could see the flashing red lights and as I followed the crowd to Park Avenue, I saw the chaos in front of The Waldorf.

There seemed to be a fire, although I couldn't see any smoke. Emergency personnel were all over the street and sidewalk. As I walked up the block, I felt sorry for all the poor hotel guests lined up all along the sidewalk looking like a bunch of scared drowned rats. Some of them were in their pajamas. A few of the men were bare-chested. Then I noticed a really beautiful young woman barely covered by a tiny wet nightgown clinging to her very gorgeous body. She had her arms wrapped around her chest, and her wet hair clung to her head. I could tell she was shivering even from across the street and I felt bad for her. She reminded me of Sookie, and I thought, I've really got to get Sookie out of my head because now I'm seeing her in strangers on the street.

I was almost at the end of the block when something made me turn back and look at the cold wet woman again. She turned her head to see the line of people beside her and suddenly I realized that she reminded me of Sookie because she was Sookie.

Fortunately, the traffic was barely moving so I wasn't killed running out into the street like a lunatic. I think a cop said something to me as I ran down the sidewalk, but I was so focused on Sookie that I just ignored him.

I said her name and the way she looked at me, I felt like the White Knight coming to save the day. I wrapped her in my coat and pulled her to me. Her whole body was shaking and I fought the urge to just pick her up and carry her away. I did decide she was coming with me so I could take care of her--get her warm again, but she needed to let the hotel officials know she was accounted for. As soon as we got that squared away, I found us a cab and we headed to my apartment.

My first priority was to get Sookie warm. I told my dick to just settle down when I saw her disappear into the bathroom in that little nightgown. We were in rescue mode, not seduction mode. The last thing I wanted was for Sookie to feel uncomfortable alone with me, and who could blame her after what had happened at our first meeting.

While she was soaking in the bathtub, I went into my bedroom and picked up the framed photo of her and Pam on my desk. I stashed it safely at the bottom of my laundry basket and found some clothes for Sookie to put on.

I kept my back to her when I took the clothes to her—mostly so she wouldn't feel uncomfortable and also to hide my extremely uncooperative dick. It seemed to think she was there just to please it, but I knew much better.

It was fairly late already, so I changed into some sleep pants and a tank top. I set my alarm clock and placed it on the kitchen counter so I'd be forced to get off the sofa to turn it off in the morning. I had a 9 a.m. call.

I made some hot tea and was waiting for Sookie when she emerged from the bathroom all nice and dry and warm, looking ridiculously adorable swallowed up in my clothes.

We sat on the sofa and talked while we drank our tea. I was very much aware of my attraction to her and determined to do absolutely nothing about it. I needed for her to feel safe and taken care of—not worried about the guy who'd humped her against a runway the first time he'd seen her.

I'd wanted a chance to apologize for that night—to ask her out like a normal person, but I knew this wasn't the time or place. I thought we should avoid any topic that might make her feel uncomfortable.

I was nervous around a woman for the first time in many years and found myself rambling on about my wanting to buy a house in L.A. Apparently, I talk too much when I'm nervous. I finally told myself to shut up and asked Sookie about her dreams and what she wanted in life.

I was surprised to hear that she wanted to own a runway agency. I'd considered starting an agency myself. It was a logical step for someone in my position. I couldn't model forever, and I had knowledge of the industry that would hopefully help make an agency successful.

We talked for a long time and I really could have stayed up all night getting to know her, but I knew I had to work in the morning. I was also feeling very optimistic about the fact that she was in New York for a few days. She'd also said there was no one to contact to let them know she where she was. I took that to mean she wasn't here to see some guy. I figured this would be a great chance for us to get to know each other better. I could actually ask her out and hopefully take her to dinner and end the night with a reasonable kiss instead of a mindless grope in a dark theater.

I took her into the bedroom and gave her a very platonic kiss good night before going to bed in my living room. I brushed my teeth and double-checked the alarm clock, and then lay down on the sofa to try and get some sleep.

I was almost asleep when I heard Sookie go into the bathroom. When she came out, she just stood in front of the doorway looking at me, and I was somewhat puzzled. I asked if she needed anything else, and she came to me and said she wanted me to sleep with her. I figured she felt guilty seeing me cramped on the sofa and I tried to explain to her as delicately as I could that I wouldn't be comfortable sleeping with her. I'd be a frustrated mess, and just told her I'd have trouble keeping my hands to myself.

When she whispered that she didn't want me to keep them to myself, my heart seemed to stop. Was that an invitation for what I thought it was? I knew it was a bad idea, but my body refused to listen to my brain when Sookie led me by the hand into the bedroom.

We started kissing and I told myself I would not take advantage of the situation, but it quickly became evident that I was not in complete control of myself. I wanted Sookie. I'd wanted her even before I ever met her, and here she was in my bed kissing me and touching me.

I was reminded of the moment in the theater. It wasn't simply that Sookie allowed me to kiss her, it was her incredibly sexual response to me that set me on fire for her. I had never wanted a woman more in my life.

Before I even thought about what I was doing, we seemed to be naked and I seemed to be all over her, devouring her. When she asked me to fuck her, nothing could have stopped me. Fortunately, I remembered to put on a condom, but that was my last clear thought. After that, I was nothing but a mindless fucking machine taking what I wanted from her.

Through no effort whatsoever on my part, Sookie came. I was glad she at least got something out of it for herself, but frankly all I could do was pound her senseless until I hit my own orgasm. It was not my proudest moment. I was clearly out of control. I should have felt bad about it, but I couldn't—it was just so amazingly good.

Afterwards, I got up to get rid of the condom and came back to her. Once again, I found myself feeling the need to apologize to Sookie for my behavior. I wanted to explain to her that despite my actions, what I felt for her went way beyond just a physical attraction. I wanted to _be_ with her—something I'd never really felt before, and it was a powerful feeling.

I was trying to clear my head and collect my thoughts—trying to find the right words. I finally said, "Sookie, I hope you know that this isn't just about sex for me. I know it might sound crazy because we really just met, but I have very strong feelings for you—feelings I can't quite explain. You _do _something to me…"

I waited for her response. It was probably too heavy a conversation to start at such a late hour, but I felt something needed to be said. I didn't want her to think I intended to just fuck her. I wanted her to know that I wanted much more.

I figured she might need a minute to answer me and so I just lay there in the dark, hoping she felt something close to what I did. After a moment, I started to worry that she wasn't answering me because she didn't return my feelings. Maybe she didn't feel anything. Maybe I was just a fuck to her. Maybe she was trying to think of a way to let me down gently.

I realized that I was going to be hurt if she didn't care about me, and that realization just added to my already intense emotions. She finally made a sound, but it wasn't what I was expecting. She snored. She fucking snored. Sookie was fast asleep and I smiled into the dark at my apparently wasted declaration. She hadn't even heard me.

I closed my eyes and relaxed. We may have started off a little backwards, but I knew we had at least a few days to talk about things and I finally fell asleep optimistic about Sookie and me and what we'd started.


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: I just have to share with you that I got to meet Charlaine Harris tonight. tvgirl . nicole and I stood in line for four hours to meet her and get our books signed. When I told her that Nicole and I met on a fansite, she said she was so happy to have had a hand in new friends meeting. It made me feel all warm and fuzzy because I have "met" so many new friends here and am so very grateful for our little family. And I'm also grateful to Charlaine Harris for creating these wonderful characters that we love to play with.**

The alarm woke me even though it was in the kitchen. Sookie and I hadn't moved at all, and I carefully slid out from under her, wanting to get to the alarm clock before it disturbed her. I turned it off and peeked back into the bedroom. Sookie was curled up in a little ball under the covers, her hair spread out onto the pillow behind her.

I went into the bathroom and showered and shaved. I dressed quietly (Sookie never stirred.), leaving my robe at the foot of the bed for her, and went into the kitchen to grab something to eat. While I was waiting for the coffee to brew, I wrote a note for Sookie with my cell number on it.

After I'd eaten some toast and had my coffee, I washed my dishes and set an empty cup out on the counter for Sookie. I went back into the bedroom and crouched beside the bed and watched her sleeping for a minute. She was completely out, so I just gently kissed her forehead and left for work.

We were shooting a catalog for Neiman Marcus. There were seven of us scheduled for Thursday and I was in the first three shots. I hoped I'd get a break before lunch to call Sookie, but that didn't happen. As soon as lunch was delivered, I changed back into my clothes and took my cell phone out into the hallway for some privacy.

It was a little after noon, and I wondered if she was still in my apartment. When the machine picked up, I left a message. "Hi, it's Eric. Are you there? The phone's on the desk in the bedroom. Can you pick up?" I waited a beat. "Well, I'm on a break here. Just wanted to check on you. Call me back when you can. I left my cell number on the note in the kitchen. I'm hoping to wrap up here around three. I…um…I'm looking forward to seeing you…very soon, I hope. It was tough to leave you this morning. Call me."

I ate lunch and wasn't in the first shot after lunch, so I tried calling again, but still got the machine. "It's just me again. I'll call when I'm on my way home. Hope you're okay."

The afternoon dragged. I was tired and we got behind schedule. I was finally released at 3:40 and I went out on the street to catch a cab. I debated for a second about running into a store—a Gap or something maybe—and just grabbing some clothes for Sookie in case she was imprisoned in my apartment with nothing to wear back to the hotel.

I quickly dismissed the idea, though, wanting to get home to her as quickly as possible. We could work out the clothes thing when I got there. I left another message from the cab. She still didn't pick up the phone.

I unlocked the door and called out her name, but didn't get a response. A quick scan of the apartment confirmed that she'd left. There was no sign of a note—only the one I'd left for her in the kitchen. I called information and then was connected to The Waldorf and asked for Sookie Stackhouse.

"I'm sorry, but we don't have a guest by that name."

"She was in room 420 last night. Maybe she changed rooms because of the fire."

"No, sir. She's not in room 420. She checked out this morning."

"Really? Okay. Did she leave a number…maybe a message for Eric Northman?"

"No, sir."

I was puzzled. I hadn't expected her to have checked out of the hotel.

I went into the bathroom and saw her nightgown hanging from the shower rod and thought, well, that's a good sign. Maybe she's on her way back here. Even though a part of me hoped she'd decided to just spend the rest of her trip staying with me, my gut told me it was unlikely she'd just assume she could without talking to me about it first.

I was completely frustrated, but there was nothing I could do. I waited for her call and it never came. I didn't want to leave the apartment in case she came back. Eventually, I ate some dinner and watched TV until I couldn't stay awake any longer. I wasn't sure if I should be pissed or worried, so I vacillated between the two until I finally called it a day and fell asleep.

When we broke for lunch on Friday, it was noon. I called Merlotte's and left a message for Sookie to call me. I had no clue where she was, but thought that maybe she'd check in for messages at work at the very least. When I was released at 5, I called again and left another message.

At 8:00, I called one last time.

"This is Eric Northman again. Do you know if Sookie's back from New York?"

"No, she's not. Did you want to talk to Sam?"

"No, thanks. Just tell her I called again."

I did not want to call Pam and ask her for Sookie's number. The last thing I needed was for my sister to stick her nose in this.

I felt like shit all weekend. Apparently, I had been used like a tool by Sookie Stackhouse and then dropped like a burnt match. I kept going over that night with Sookie in my head, and I just couldn't make any sense of why she would disappear like that and not call me. The only explanation was that maybe she was just a bitch.

But then that didn't make sense either. Pam loved her like a sister. I thought I was a fairly good judge of character, and even though I hadn't known her for long, she really seemed like a great girl—not like a cold-hearted bitch.

By Monday night, I was back to worrying that something had happened to her. I finally broke down on Tuesday and called Pam.

I started the conversation with our usual topics and finally just casually asked, "So, what's going on with Sookie? Have you talked to her lately?"

"Yeah, I saw her last night."

So she was back in L.A. at least and hadn't been kidnapped by aliens.

"So, how's she doing?"

"Fine. You know, Eric, you really need to meet her—like soon. I'm telling you—the two of you would be so great together. I know I sound like a broken record but…"

"I did meet her."

That stopped her. There was a beat of silence.

"When?"

"After the Calvin Klein show last weekend."

"Oh. And, so what did you think?"

"She's great." Or maybe the coldest bitch in the universe.

"Well, then get your ass back here and go after her. I think she's seeing this idiot guy again that she dated once before, but I'm sure after one night with you, she'll forget his name. I can't ever remember it myself. He's a complete goober."

"She's got a fucking boyfriend?" I couldn't believe it, but then maybe that explained why she'd disappeared on me.

"Since when do you let something like that stop you? You're Eric Northman."

"Fuck, Pam. You don't go pushing some girl on me for fucking _years_ and then just casually mention that she's not available. What the fuck?"

"Jesus, Eric. She's not married. Just ask her out. I'm sure she'll be crazy about you—blind to other men. What is going on with you?"

"Maybe you need to just stay the fuck out of my love life."

"What love life? Boning an occasional bimbo is not a love life. Sookie is someone special. You said yourself she's great."

"Well, maybe I was wrong. Maybe she's just a bitch."

"And maybe you're just an asshole."

"Fine. I gotta go."

I hung up before Pam had a chance to say anything else. Sookie had a boyfriend. She'd chosen a "complete goober" over me. Pam said after one night with me, Sookie would be blind to other men. Little did she know that Sookie did have a night with me, and apparently, it sent her right back into the arms of goober boy. Fuck.

I'd finally felt something—something _real_ for someone, and she was with someone else.

Pam was right—as usual. My love life was ridiculous. I couldn't remember the last time I really cared about a woman. There were always plenty of girls to date or to fuck whenever I had the need, but it all meant nothing in the end.

I finally found someone who meant something special to me—someone I really wanted to get to know, and I couldn't have her. I was pissed, and even worse than pissed, I was hurt.


	11. Chapter 11

The rest of my week was uneventful. I had a shoot on Friday for an ad for Absolut vodka. They'd been a client for the past two years and offered a very lucrative contract.

Saturday night I went to a dinner party at Felicia and Clancy's. There were three single women there—all quite beautiful—models I'd never met before. I could have easily collected some phone numbers. I probably could have gotten laid had I put a little effort into it, but I wasn't terribly interested.

All week, I couldn't get Sookie off my mind, of course, and decided to give myself a break in that department. I figured I might need some time to work through that. I'd never met anyone like Sookie, and certainly never had such an unusual start to a relationship with a woman. I don't know that I'd ever fallen so hard so fast before. And I'd had the rug pulled from underneath me pretty fast as well.

Sunday morning I got a call from Bobby Burnham, my realtor in L.A. A house in Lafayette Square was coming onto the market and it sounded exactly like what I wanted. Built in 1915, it was huge—over 5000 square feet. Seven bedrooms, five baths, and it needed lots of work, which was great for me. That usually meant it hadn't been redone badly, and it still retained its original charm. It would be listed at a million nine and the open house was on Saturday. If I flew in early, he could get me in to see it on Friday.

I hung up and booked myself a ticket for Thursday. Then I called Pam.

"Sorry about last week," I started.

"That's okay. Did you get your period?"

"Funny. I'm coming to L.A. on Thursday."

"Oh good. What's up? Do you have a job?"

"No, there's a house in Lafayette Square."

"Great. When can we see it?"

"Friday."

"Okay. I have a show Friday night, but otherwise, so far I'm free. Oh wait, I'm supposed to have lunch with Sookie on Friday."

"That's fine. We can see the house after lunch."

"You want to join us?"

"No. Thanks, though."

"I promise I'll stay out of it. I won't push you two in the closet and lock the door or anything."

"It's okay. You were right. She is great. She's very special. She's just not interested in me, that's all. It's not a crime."

Pam was quiet for a second. "Are you okay?"

"Sure. I'm fine. I'll see you on Thursday. I'll be there in time for dinner."

"Okay. Safe flight, brother."

By the end of the day Monday, I had moved my money around so that a big chunk of it was sitting in my checking account in case I wanted to make an offer on the house. Bobby emailed me some pictures of the house and it looked like a beauty.

I made plans to have lunch on Friday with Maxwell Lee so I wouldn't be tempted to tag along with Pam and see Sookie. After lunch, Pam met me and Bobby Burnham in Lafayette Square and we got a good look at the house.

Pam and I were standing in the back yard when she said, "I think I need to talk to you about something."

"You don't like it?" I loved the house, but her opinion mattered to me.

"No, it's not about the house. I love the house. No one would be happier than I would be if you bought it. Seriously. I love it."

"What is it then?"

"It's about Sookie."

I braced myself. "I thought you said you were going to drop that."

"I know. But I think you should know this."

"What is it?"

"It's about that guy she's seeing. She told me something…something in confidence."

"Then don't tell me."

"Eric, if you like her…I think you should do something about it. But you need to do something before tomorrow."

"Well, that sounds rather ominous."

"Well, things might change tomorrow." She took a deep breath, clearly torn about not betraying a confidence and yet she wanted me to know something. "Her boyfriend's a dickhead.'

"Well, that's her choice if she wants to date a dickhead. She's an adult."

"He's buying the runway division of Merlotte's, and she's upset about it."

That got my attention. "What do you mean?"

"She wanted to buy it herself, and she told dickhead about it. He told her she couldn't qualify for a loan and then made an offer himself to Sam behind her back."

"You're right. He is a dickhead."

Bobby stepped out into the yard and interrupted us, and we continued the tour of the house with no further discussion of Sookie.

I was sitting in the dark theater pretending to watch the fashion show, but I was really watching the back of Sookie's head. I was several rows behind her, already seated when she took her usual seat in the first row. Since learning about her situation with her boyfriend buying the agency, I'd made the decision to try and help her buy it instead.

It irked me no end that she might lose out on her dream because her own boyfriend, of all people, was buying the agency out from under her. I wasn't sure if she'd let me help her or even if she'd let me talk to her about it, but I wanted to try.

After the show, I watched her walk to the backstage door and I waited for the house to empty out. I hopped up onto the runway and sat to wait for her. I kept watching the backstage door, but she didn't show. Just as I was starting to worry that I'd somehow missed her, she came through the side door of the theater. She looked stunning, of course, and I felt a physical response to seeing her, but I set that aside. I wanted to offer my help with the purchase of the agency and had no intentions of getting into what had happened between us personally.

After a fairly brief discussion, I followed her back to her apartment in Hollywood and she showed me the figures she'd drawn up regarding the purchase of the agency. Sam's asking price seemed very reasonable to me, and I knew how hard Sookie worked and what a good booker she was from Pam's reports.

I told Sookie I'd be happy to be her partner, or if she'd rather, she could buy me out as soon as she got a loan. I'd leave that up to her.

I watched her on the phone with Sam discussing our offer, and tried not to dwell on how beautiful she was or how being in the room with her tugged at my heart. It was still fairly bruised from her handling of it in New York.

I got up and went to use her bathroom and when I came back out and sat down again, she was hanging up the phone, and came to sit beside me on the sofa.

"We're meeting Sam on Sunday morning at 10 if that's okay." She was smiling, seemingly pleased with her conversation with Sam.

"That's fine. My flight's at 12:30."

Her smile faded. "Oh, I didn't realize you were leaving on Sunday."

"Yeah, I am. I thought we needed to see Sam by tomorrow."

"No, he's got three days to respond to Quinn's offer. If Sunday doesn't work for you, I can call him back."

"No, Sunday's fine. I'm confused though. What happens tomorrow.?" I was certain that Pam said something about my needing to see Sookie before Saturday.

"Oh, I…um…I'm going to Santa Barbara with Quinn. Or I was, anyway. Now I'm not sure what to do."

"You're not sure because of the offer he made on the agency?"

"Yeah." She looked a little worried. "And some other stuff."

"Okay. Well, that's really not my business."

Sookie chewed on her bottom lip, still looking worried.

"Sookie, we need to talk about what happened in New York." I braced myself for an awkward conversation, but thought we needed to get everything out in the open if we were going into business together, even briefly.

Sookie put her hands over her face and shook her head a little. She whispered, "That was a mistake."

"Which part? The part when we slept together or the part when you took off without saying anything?"

"All of it." I could see her bottom lip quivering, but her hands were still covering her eyes.

"Okay. We can just put it behind us then. Just forget about it."

She nodded and I could tell she'd started to cry. I peeled a hand from her face and held it. She dropped the other one to her lap and looked down. I watched a tear fall onto the back of her hand.

"Please don't cry. It's okay."

"No it's not, Eric." She looked up into my eyes, hers wet with tears. "I can't imagine what you must think of me." She let go of my hand and wiped her cheek as a tear fell.

"What I must think of you?"

"For sleeping with you. I'm not like that. I don't know what happened to me."

"What I must _think_ of you? Sookie, I think I'm in love with you."

I really hadn't expected those particular words to come out of my mouth, but I realized as I said them that I did mean them.

"You do?" She looked fairly shocked. So was I.

"Yes." I laughed a little. "I know, I know. It's stupid. You're with somebody else."

"What?"

"Dickhead. Quinn. You're with him, and I didn't know it. Why didn't you tell me you had a boyfriend?"

"I didn't have one. I didn't go out with him until after I got back from New York. I mean, I'd dated him before, but that was awhile ago."

It took me a second to process that information. "Do you love him? Is it serious?" I was starting to hope that I had a chance with her after all.

"No, I don't, and no, it's…um…we were supposed to you know…get serious—seal the deal-- in Santa Barbara."

"When you say 'get serious,' do you mean…I don't know, get engaged? Date exclusively? What does 'get serious' mean? Seal the deal? What does that mean exactly? And you can say it's none of my business if you want to."

"Well, it isn't any of your business, but we were going to….you know…sleep together." She looked down and her voice got tiny. "Only now I don't want to."

"Tell me why you don't want to." My heart was pounding in my chest. I wanted her to be mine.

She looked into my eyes. "Because I want to be with you."

I leaned down and kissed her. Those were the words I'd wanted to hear. I didn't even realize how much I wanted it until she said it and I felt all the pain of her leaving me in New York just melt away.

She wrapped her arms around me and I held her close and we just pressed our lips together, and I thought, finally, this feels right. This is right.

**A/N: If you want to take a look at the house Eric's considering, go here (remove spaces around dots): ****http://www**** . zillow . com/homedetails/1809-Virginia-Rd-Los-Angeles-CA-90019/20601523_zpid/**

**mystic-notions made me a beautiful banner for Runway! Check it out: http://img249 . imageshack . us/img249/3526/sesnrunwaybanner . jpg **

**Yes, that's the Lafayette Square house on the banner, and just consider the fishnets a teaser for a future chapter. ;)**


	12. Chapter 12

Sookie and I kissed for a long moment on the sofa. Then she broke the kiss and just pressed her face into my chest while I held her.

"Are you okay?" I asked.

"Yeah. I think I'm in shock a little."

I laughed. "Yeah, me too. I'm so sorry I did this all wrong. I never should have kissed you in the theater. And I should have stayed on my couch in New York and minded my own business."

She sat back and looked up at me. "You regret that?"

"No, no at all. Are you kidding me? No. I regret that I obviously freaked you out. I just…I don't know…lost it. I was just so…. Anyway, I'm sorry."

"It's okay."

"So, do you make it a habit of running away when things get a little complicated in relationships? I've seen you do it twice now."

"I have no idea. Apparently."

"Please don't do it again. It doesn't feel good to the person you're running away from."

"I'm sorry, Eric. I was just so embarrassed."

"Don't be. There's something very powerful between us. Neither one of us seems to remember the general rules of social conduct when we're together. I think it's a good thing. A very good thing."

Sookie's cheeks flushed. God, she looked adorable.

She asked, "Why did you kiss me in the theater? I mean, it was amazing, but…well...do you do that a lot?"

"No." I laughed again. "No, I guess I'd had sort of a thing for you for a long time. Okay, not sort of. I had a thing for you. I'd heard so much about you from Pam and seen your picture. And there was just such an attraction. I know it was rude. I really don't ever act like that. Seriously. I wanted to ask you out, but you ran away."

"Yeah. I did. I'm sorry."

She picked up my empty coffee cup and walked into her kitchen, asking, "Do you want something else to drink?"

"No, I should probably go."

She didn't answer, so I assumed she agreed.

I went on, "So, if you're not going to Santa Barbara tomorrow, would you like to have lunch? Go to an open house? I'd love for you to see this house."

"Yeah, that would be great. I guess I need to call Quinn in the morning. It's getting kind of late--probably too late to call tonight." She went to her closet and opened the doors. There was a little chest of drawers in there and she opened one of the drawers and pulled out my t-shirt, sweat pants, and socks. "Here you go." She handed them to me and went to get her purse from the kitchen table. She came right back with a twenty-dollar bill and held it out to me.

"What's this for?"

"I borrowed it for cab fare back to The Waldorf."

"Oh, okay."

I took it from her and set it on the end table beside the couch. Before she could object, I stood and gave her a kiss. At first it was just a soft kiss on the lips. Of course, she responded with this little sound—kind of like a little moan, and I dropped the clothes I was holding onto the sofa and took her in my arms. Within seconds, our tongues were battling and our bodies were pressing together and we were sharing the same passion that had overwhelmed us on the two other occasions we'd seen each other.

I finally pulled away from her. "Okay, I'm gonna go."

"Right. Good night." Neither of us made any attempt to separate and we just went right back to kissing. That went on for a long moment again until I finally stopped it again.

"Okay. I'll see you tomorrow then," I said, breathing a little heavily.

"Okay." Then we were back to the kissing again.

I stopped again. "Okay, this is silly. I don't want to leave."

"Oh, good." She sat back down onto the sofa.

"But, I really should." I sat beside her and we launched into each other's arms, kissing wildly again. I pushed her back onto the sofa and within minutes, we were lying across the sofa, our hands rubbing all over each other, making out like a couple of teenagers.

She broke the kiss and said, "Oh my god, you do have to go. I mean, you can't stay."

"Why not?" Suddenly, I never wanted to leave.

She pressed her lips together and looked like a little girl who'd been caught stealing candy.

"What it is, Sookie?"

She whispered, "I don't have any condoms."

I grinned. "Okay, so the decision's made then. I'm gonna go."

"Okay."

She scooted back on the sofa and sat up a little. I rested my head on her chest which was heaving gently. I closed my eyes and listened to her heartbeat while I tried to slow my breathing down a bit.

We lay together like that for a minute. Sookie stroked my hair. I raised my head and looked at her and said, "I still want to stay."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah. I'm leaving on Sunday. I want to spend as much time as I can with you. I promise I'll behave. I'll wear these." I pulled my sweats out from under her shoulder and she smiled.

"Okay." Then she got more serious. "I don't want you to leave either."

I gave her a quick kiss and stood with my sweat pants to go into the bathroom. When I came out, Sookie had opened her sofa bed and was placing pillows on it. I set my clothes on the chair where she'd already put my t-shirt and socks and I put my shoes on the floor beside it. I set my wallet, keys, phone and watch on the end table beside the sofa.

"Do you have an extra toothbrush?" I asked.

"I'll look."

I followed Sookie back into the bathroom and she produced a new toothbrush from the medicine cabinet and handed me the toothpaste. She left me alone while I brushed my teeth, and when I came out, she was waiting for the bathroom with a pink cotton night gown in her hand.

While Sookie was in the bathroom, I got into bed and texted Pam: I'm staying at Sookie's. We're going to the open house at 2. Come by if you want to see it again.

I pictured her doing a little celebration dance when she read the first part. She was probably the third happiest person about the turn of events of the evening.

When Sookie came out of the bathroom, she had on the long pink gown and looked even more beautiful. I watched her put her clothes away and close the closet door. Then she turned out the lights and climbed into bed beside me.

I was on my back and she snuggled up to me, resting her head on my chest and taking my hand in hers.

"So, where did you go when you checked out of the Waldorf?" I asked into the dark.

"Oh, um…I just went right to the airport and came home."

"Really? I thought maybe you went to stay with someone else in New York. The agency said you were still in New York when I called the next day."

"I didn't tell anyone I came back. I didn't want to have to explain myself to anyone. It probably sounds silly to you, but that was a really big deal to me. I've never done anything even remotely like that with anyone. I was very upset with myself."

"It doesn't sound silly at all. I'm just sorry we didn't have a chance to talk about it. And I'm sorry you felt bad about it. I really didn't intend for that to happen."

She gave my chest a little kiss in response.

I continued, "Why don't we go out tomorrow night to a nice dinner somewhere. You know, on a real date."

"That sounds great."

"I want you to feel good about us, and I've already really blown that twice. I hope you'll give me a chance to make things right."

Sookie lifted her head and looked at me. It was dark, but I could see the emotion in her eyes. She kissed me gently on the lips and I squeezed her hand. She rolled onto her back and I took her in my arms and kissed her softly, slowly, reverently. This time, it wasn't the frenzied passion we'd shared earlier, but a sweet and gentle exploration of our lips, tongues, bodies.

I knew there'd be no sex, and so that pressure was off of both of us. We took our time and just kissed for a long, luxurious time.

When we stopped, she turned away from me and I curled up behind her and held her. We talked some more—about our favorite music, places we'd like to see, how we liked to spend our spare time. I was surprised how much we had in common and kept thinking how right Pam was about our being such a good match.

We stayed up very late talking and kissing and finally fell asleep wrapped together completely content. It had been quite a night.


	13. Chapter 13

I woke in the morning on my back with Sookie cuddled up against my side.

I got up to use the bathroom. When I came out, Sookie hadn't moved. I went into the kitchen to start a pot of coffee and was looking for the cups when through the window I saw a car pull up in front of the building and park. I didn't think much of it as I watched a tall bald guy get out of the car and start towards the sidewalk.

Suddenly, it dawned on me that Sookie hadn't called dickhead yet and I checked the clock over the sink. It was 9:30. This must be dickhead, I thought.

I didn't want to wake Sookie and must admit, I wanted to be the one to let this asshole in on his ruined plans. I went to the front door and opened it just as he was stepping up onto the stoop.

I loved the look of complete shock on his face.

"You must be Quinn," I stated.

"Who are you?"

"Eric Northman."

"Is Sookie here?" He tried to look past me, but I kept the door halfway closed so he couldn't see into the room.

"Yeah, but she's sleeping. She's not going to be able to make the trip to Santa Barbara today."

I could hear Sookie's movement from the bed behind me and knew she must be awake.

"I'd like to talk to her myself if you don't mind." He seemed rather pissed.

I called back over my shoulder, "Sweetie, did you forget to call Quinn to cancel your trip?"

I looked over at the bed and she was completely under the covers. She just kind of groaned.

Quinn peered beyond my shoulder and I knew he could see her even though I didn't open the door further. I stepped forward a little, forcing him to step back as I said, "Yeah, sorry. I guess she forgot to call."

He looked like he wanted to kill me.

I added, "She's pretty tired this morning," for good measure.

"Well, fuck this," he said as he turned away and marched back to his car.

"Bye, now," I called out as he got into his car.

I closed the door and looked back to the lump under the covers. I crawled up her body and pulled the sheet from her face as I teased her. "Are you mad at me?"

She swatted at my arm playfully and started to giggle.

I grabbed her and bit into her neck as I tickled her, making her squirm and laugh harder. Pretty soon, we weren't laughing anymore, but kissing and moaning and getting tangled in the covers.

Of course, I remembered that nobody's clothes were coming off even though I wanted nothing more than to ravage her for hours. I rolled off of her and sat on the edge of the bed, just looking down at her beautiful face.

"Do you want to take a shower first?" I asked as I took a deep breath.

She was out of breath, her hair a sexy mess. "Sure." She kissed my hand and stood to go into the bathroom.

I went back to the kitchen and poured myself a cup of coffee.

I closed up the sofa bed and was sitting on it, checking my email on my phone when Sookie came out in a bathrobe.

"Your turn," she said sweetly.

I gave her a kiss and grabbed my clothes from the night before and went in to take a shower and dress. I could at least wear a clean t-shirt and socks.

When I put my watch on and picked up my keys and phone to put into my pockets, I noticed that the twenty-dollar bill had been moved and was sitting on top of my wallet. I looked at Sookie and she just smiled and nodded her head in approval as I stuck it inside the wallet. It wasn't worth arguing over.

Once we were both dressed and had had our coffee, we drove to Larchmont Village and parked. It was a beautiful day so we just walked around, checking out the little shops and watching the people.

We held hands and every male who passed us stared at Sookie. She seemed completely oblivious to it. I caught our reflection in one of the store windows and loved how we looked together—like a very happy couple. It was hard to believe we'd only met three weeks ago.

There was a dog adoption event on the sidewalk in front of Blockbuster with ten dogs all looking for homes. People were stopping and petting the dogs and the people from the animal rescue group—called Hounds for Hope--answered questions about the dogs. They had all come from local shelters and had been rescued on the day they were scheduled to be euthanized and then placed in foster homes.

There was one really big goofy mutt that I fell in love with. He was probably mostly black lab, but was clearly a mixed breed. He kept jumping up on me, and the guy who I assumed was fostering him kept apologizing, saying he hadn't had any obedience training yet. I didn't mind at all.

When we got hungry, Sookie and I walked down the street and sat at an outdoor table at a place called Le Petit Greek. We enjoyed the sunshine and ate some amazing Greek food while watching the people strolling by. I'd never been to Larchmont Village, but Sookie said she came fairly frequently since it was close to her apartment.

As 2:00 approached, we walked back to the car and drove down to Lafayette Square. I watched Sookie's jaw drop as we entered the gated community. It was fairly shocking to see the rows of old mansions with perfectly manicured lawns in the heart of L.A. It had been named one of the ten best neighborhoods in which to live by Los Angeles Magazine, and yet I was willing to bet that most L.A. residents had never even heard of it.

We turned onto Virginia Road and I parked on the street in front of the house.

As I opened Sookie's door, she just said, "Oh my god." It was a very impressive house and I was happy to see that she liked it.

Bobby pulled up behind us and got out of his car and came up to meet Sookie. The three of us walked up the sidewalk and entered together. I left Bobby and the listing agent to chat in the living room while I gave Sookie the tour I'd taken the day before.

We were in the master bedroom upstairs when Pam found us. She acted like the three of us spent our Saturday afternoons together all the time. There was no know-it-all smirk and no teasing, and I was glad. I didn't want Sookie to feel awkward about the fact that Pam knew we'd spent the night together.

We had taken a lot of pictures the day before, but Pam still brought her camera and took some more. She knew I was fairly serious about making an offer and wanted us to have the photos to refer to later if we wanted.

We finished our tour of the house downstairs in the entry way. Sookie stood and stared at the staircase that led upstairs.

I took her hand and she whispered, "It's like the staircase Rhett carried Scarlett up."

We thanked the listing agent and all stepped out onto the front sidewalk.

I turned to Sookie and said, "So, what did you think?"

"It's the most beautiful house I've ever seen."

I turned to my sister, "Pam?"

"Ditto, brother. You know I'd love it if it was yours."

"Okay then." I looked at Bobby. "Do you have time to write an offer today?"

"Absolutely. Want to follow me to my office?"

"Sure. I'll see you shortly."

When we got into the car, Sookie was very quiet.

"Are you okay? What are you thinking? You like it, right?"

"Oh, yeah. Of course. I was just thinking you really should meet with Bobby alone. This is important."

"You're welcome to come. I'd love to have you with me, but it might take some time. Was there something else you needed to do today?"

"Actually, I do need to run some errands. Maybe I could do that while you're with Bobby."

"Okay. I'll drop you at home. You can run your errands. I'll write up the offer and swing by Pam's to get my stuff. That way, I'll have it with me in the morning. I can just go straight to the airport after we meet with Sam."

"Okay." She was quiet for a minute before continuing. "Are you sure it's not a problem to spend the money on the agency? I don't want anything to interfere with your getting the house. I know how much you've been planning this."

"No, I told you, it's fine. Don't worry about that."

"Okay." But she did look a little worried.

I walked her to her door and kissed her and said, "I'll be back around 6:30 or 7—is that okay? We'll go somewhere nice. On a real date."

That got a very sweet grin out of her and another kiss.

When I got to Bobby's office in Beverly Hills, he had run the comps in the neighborhood and we sat down to discuss the offer. We both agreed that the asking price seemed a little high considering the amount of work the house needed. Because it was in a historical preservation zone, I would have a huge tax break on the property taxes. But I'd still have to spend quite a bit on the renovations.

We wrote up the offer at a million six hundred thousand, figuring we'd probably get a counter offer and end up somewhere around a million seven. That felt about right to me, and then I'd still have the money I thought it would take for the renovations in what I called my "house budget."

I wouldn't be completely tapped out, of course. I knew that I'd be retiring from modeling in the fairly near future because of my age and I still had plenty of money stashed away to start a business or buy one after I retired.

As much as I liked the house, I wasn't emotionally attached to it. If the counter offer was close to the asking price, I was willing to walk away from the deal. I knew that there would be other houses, and plenty of the houses in that neighborhood were just what I wanted. I was also in no hurry, and could even wait years for the right house if I needed to. Actually, I already had.

Honestly, what I was becoming very emotionally attached to was the idea of living with Sookie in one of those old houses. Seeing her actually in one made my little fantasy I'd had in New York seem very real and attainable. I knew it was way too early in our relationship to talk to her about it, but I felt very hopeful about one day having a life with her.

I left Bobby's office fairly excited about the offer on the house, but even more excited about my date with Sookie. My future had never looked brighter, and everything was falling perfectly into place.


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N: It must be my birthday today because I woke up to find another incredibly beautiful banner for Runway! dancinchick32 has very generously created this masterpiece for the story (remove spaces around dots): ****http://img534**** . imageshack . us/img534/5409/runwaybanner2a . jpg**

**I'd also like to thank sapfirerose for posting a teaser for this chapter on her blog: ****http://mysvmaddiction**** . blogspot . com/ If you haven't checked it out, then go there right now! It's a treasure trove for SVM lovers.**

**Some of you commented on the sweet dog Eric and Sookie met at the adoption event. Rescuing shelter pets is a cause near and dear to my heart. Here in Los Angeles and in surrounding counties, thousands of animals are euthanized every month due of overpopulation. (Black dogs and cats have an even smaller chance of being adopted simply because of their color.) So, please spay and neuter your pets, and when looking for a new family member, please adopt a homeless pet from a shelter or a reputable rescue organization. You'll be saving a life quite literally.**

After I finished with the contract at Bobby's office, I went to Pam's and packed my bag. I changed into a gray Armani suit and black shirt for my date. I kept some clothes at Pam's apartment so I could travel fairly light, and the suit was in her closet.

I knew it was too late to make a reservation at most of the good restaurants, but I figured we'd just show up and take our chances—maybe at Spago. My name didn't generally help me get a reservation, especially in L.A., but once people saw my face, I was often recognized. At least that's why I assumed I got seated.

I made two stops on my way to Sookie's--one for condoms and the other for flowers. I was certain I'd never anticipated a date in better spirits. I tucked the condom box into my bag and carried it along with the flowers to her door and knocked.

When the door opened, she took my breath away. She had on a black dress that showed a hint of cleavage and had a full skirt. I scanned down her body to the fishnet stockings and black high-heeled sandals and felt an unmistakable surge of lust run through my veins.

"My god, you look beautiful," I said.

"So do you. Please come in."

I handed her the flowers and she smelled them with a twinkle in her eye and stepped into the kitchen, I assumed to find a vase.

I set my bag on the floor by the closet and sat down on the sofa.

"Can I get you something to drink?" she asked as she set the vase on the end table beside me.

"No, thanks." I knew we should go, but I wanted a kiss first so I held my arms out for her to come to me.

Well, she did. As I wrapped my arms around her, she planted her lips on mine and crawled into my lap, straddling me with her fishnet-covered legs.

I immediately forgot my manners and stuck my tongue into her beautiful mouth, and within seconds, we were back to our usual mindless passion for each other. I had never in my life had such a powerful physical attraction to a woman, and it certainly seemed mutual.

She'd told me the night before when we talked until almost dawn that she had only slept with her boyfriend in college and me. I found it to be such an amazing turn-on that she had easily refrained from sex for _years _but couldn't seem to keep her hands off me. For such an innocent girl, she sure was grinding herself into my dick awfully hard. I guess my having my hands on her ass and pulling her into me wasn't exactly helping either.

She broke the kiss and threw her head back, moaning as she humped me. I kissed down her neck and licked the cleavage I could reach with my tongue.

"Do we have a reservation or anything?" she asked between moans.

"No," I mumbled into her skin, wishing I could get the top of her dress down lower with my teeth.

"Okay, wait right here."

She climbed off of me and went into the bathroom. I stood and retrieved the box of condoms from my bag. I heard the bathroom door open and turned to see her emerge holding an identical box in her hand and we both cracked up.

"Now where were we?" I asked as I sat and she climbed back onto my lap and started kissing me again. This time her shoes and stockings were missing and I groaned into her mouth as my hands felt up the length of her legs and found her pantiless.

Her hands reached between us and frantically unbuckled my belt and started working on the button of my pants. I let her spectacular ass go for a second and helped her get my pants and underwear pulled down. She propped herself onto her knees while I pulled my pants down around my thighs. Her hands were immediately on my hard-on and mine felt around beside us on the sofa for one of the boxes of condoms.

Sookie pulled her skirt up and started rubbing herself on my dick while I tore open a condom wrapper. She disengaged for a second while I rolled the condom on and then she just sat down on me, taking half of me in her in one motion. I groaned and looked at her, but she was looking down between us with pure lust in her eyes.

I kissed her and she raised up a touch before pressing back down, this time taking all of me in.

She said, "Oh my god," into my mouth as we both started to move together. It was intense and fast, and I knew I wouldn't last very long. We'd just started and I was already feeling like I could come at any second.

I pressed my thumb into her clit and rubbed, hoping she could catch up with me and to my amazement, within a few seconds, I felt her pulsating on me and she broke the kiss and cried out into my neck.

I thought her orgasm seemed incredibly intense, but it was nothing compared to the one I felt. I held her firmly down on me and tried to muffle my voice by pressing my face into her hair. She put her hands on my head and our mouths blindly found each other as we both finished coming together.

I kissed her until we'd both come down a little and then we just held each other very tightly, still panting heavily. I had never had a more intense sexual encounter and had never felt such a close connection to a woman before in my life. I stroked her back and she kissed my hair and I thought, how on earth am I going to be able to get on a plane tomorrow and leave her? I was in love with Sookie Stackhouse.


	15. Chapter 15

Eric and I were sitting at a table in Spago having dinner when it occurred to me that I was in love with him. I wasn't really surprised. I'd been fighting strong feelings for Eric since the day I met him and he'd planted the mother of all kisses on me.

I was so ridiculously physically attracted to him, as I had demonstrated on my sofa when he came to pick me up to take me to dinner. I got a warm rush between my legs just thinking about it.

But it wasn't the thought of his sexual prowess that made me feel love for him. It was the way he spoke about the house he'd just made an offer on. He didn't really go into detail about the offer and I didn't ask about it—it was really none of my business. He just said, "I'm feeling really good about the house."

I could see the warmth in his eyes. They glowed when he talked about it.

"That's great. I'm so glad."

"I can see my future more clearly than I ever have."

I reached across the table and squeezed his hand, thinking I loved that he was so happy to see his goal about buying the house being attainable.

"I'm so glad to see that it makes you happy, Eric."

"It makes me very happy. I just might be happier than I ever imagined."

It was in that moment that I knew I loved him. I realized that I would do anything for him to make him happy. If there was a way to give him the house, I would have done it on the spot. I wanted to see that look in his eyes forever—that look of hope and contentment and just sheer bliss.

When we got back to my apartment, I went into the bathroom and got ready for bed. I washed my face and brushed my teeth and put on what I hoped was my sexiest night gown—it was short and black with lace along the hem. I almost walked out but then decided to put my fishnet tights back on. Eric had complimented me on them several times during dinner and I knew how guys liked stuff like that.

I felt a little silly wearing them with my night gown, but hoped Eric would like it. When I came out of the bathroom, Eric was sitting up in the bed which he had apparently opened while I was undressing. The sheet was barely covering his lap and I could tell he was naked. He had a huge smile on his face and as his eyes scanned down to my fishnets, his expression changed into what could only be described as grateful.

I hung my dress in the closet and put my shoes away, and then turned to get into bed with Eric. He pulled me to him and kissed me, sweetly and softly at first. I adjusted my body a little and felt how hard he already was and I rolled onto my back. In a split second, he was all over me.

He pushed my gown up enough to kiss my breasts and caress them and I just relaxed into the delicious sensations. I started to push my tights down a little at the waist, but Eric stopped me and pulled them back up. He flashed a devilish smirk up at me, my nipple still in his mouth, and then went back to his task.

I opened my legs more and he lowered his attentions and was soon licking and sucking me through the crotch of my fishnets. I watched his hands for a minute as they massaged up and down my thighs, but soon, I succumbed to the pleasure of what he was doing with his mouth and just closed my eyes. It was very different having the fabric between us even though it wasn't really a solid piece of fabric. His tongue had an odd texture through the tiny holes of the fishnet and it was driving me wild. I wanted more and hoped I told him so with my moans and my hands on his head pulling him closer to me.

I finally just said, "More. Please, more," and I heard his hand beside my head fumbling around for the box of condoms on the end table. His tongue never left me, but I opened my eyes to watch him trying to extricate a condom with one hand.

I pushed him away, letting him know that I was ready for him to put the condom on. He sat up onto his knees and rolled one on and I started to push my tights down again.

Again, he stopped me, and just said, "No," as he pushed my hands away and pulled the tights back up and I wondered how we were going to have sex while I still had them on.

Eric looked lustfully between my legs and touched me through the tights. He said, "I'll buy you another pair," as he began to rip the crotch open with both hands. My heart raced when I realized that he was going to fuck me with them on. He lowered his body onto mine and his hand went to his erection to push it into me.

He said, "I'll buy you a hundred pairs," as he entered me and I cried out at how forceful he was and grabbed his behind to pull him closer.

I bent my knees and raised my legs higher so he could go deeper and in very short order he was pumping me hard and fast and ramming his tongue into my mouth with every thrust. I was quickly on my way to another powerful orgasm produced by the incredibly sexually adept Eric Northman.

As I came, I groaned and he held still, pushing into me with amazingly intuitive perfection. As I started to relax and come back to earth, I lowered my legs and wrapped them around Eric, rubbing his calves with my feet. He kissed me tenderly and resumed his thrusts, only this time they were slow and gentle—the exact opposite of the pre-orgasmic ones.

We kissed and languished for awhile in the slow and sweet rhythm. Eric raised his head and looked me in the eye and said, "You are so beautiful," before kissing me again. I held him to me and pressed his head into my neck as I felt him starting to come. He kind of whimpered a little as his body tensed and I just held on to him as tightly as I could.

Once our breathing had slowed down some, Eric kissed me again and pulled out. I inhaled sharply at the abrupt sensation and he smiled into my mouth.

He got up and went into the bathroom while I just lay there like a lump, unable to move. I closed my eyes and felt him return to the bed and start to pull my night gown up further and carefully extricate my arms. I was like a rag doll, and just let him do whatever he wanted. He lifted my head a little to get the gown completely off. Then I felt him pulling my tights down (finally!) and he slowly and carefully removed them until I was lying completely naked, my eyes still closed.

"Don't throw these away, okay?" he said, and I assumed he was referring to the torn fishnets.

"Are you kidding? I'm having them framed." I was so wiped out, I slurred my words as if I were drunk and that made me smile.

Even though my eyes were closed, I could tell when Eric turned off the bedside lamp and the room was dark. He pressed his body against mine and draped an arm across my stomach, and that was the last thing I remembered. I was out.


	16. Chapter 16

Fortunately, Eric had his phone alarm set and it woke us. He turned it off and began to nuzzle my neck and pulled me to him. I looked at the clock and knew we'd have to hurry to make our meeting with Sam. Even if we called Sam and pushed it back, Eric had a flight to catch. I gave him a kiss and very reluctantly got out of bed.

I fixed some coffee and heated up some blueberry muffins while Eric showered. I wished I could have joined him, but knew that we'd never make it out of the house if that happened. I showered quickly while he ate and he packed his bag.

We decided to take two cars so he wouldn't have to take the time to bring me home before heading to the airport to turn in his rental car.

I parked behind the agency in my usual spot and Eric met me at the front of the building on La Brea. Sam was waiting for us in his office and we all sat down to discuss our offer. Sam had the contract ready for us to fill out and sign. He explained that his lawyer had drawn up the contract and that just like Quinn, we would have an answer from him within three days of signing the contract.

We didn't know exactly how much Quinn had offered, but I knew it was "close" to Sam's asking price. Eric and I had decided to make a full-price offer because we felt it was a fair price and it would hopefully guarantee that our offer would be more attractive than Quinn's.

Eric wrote two checks out to Sam. One was for $1000.00 as earnest money. He handed it to Sam. Then he wrote another one for $85,000 and handed it to me, so I'd have it when the deal closed.

We all walked downstairs together and Eric and I said good bye to Sam as he got into his car beside mine and drove away.

"Are you excited?" Eric asked.

"Yeah, I am. Anxious too, though. I'll feel better in three days, I guess."

"I wouldn't worry. I think we'll get it. I think it's great. I'm happy for you—that you're getting what you want—what you've been planning for for so long. It's a big day."

"Thank you, Eric, for helping me."

"You're welcome."

He leaned down and kissed me and pulled me into his arms. When he broke the kiss, he just held me for a long moment.

"I wish you didn't have to go." I said into his chest.

"I know. Me too." He rocked me gently from side to side. "I'll call you later, okay?"

"Okay." I got one last kiss and then watched him walk towards the street. I felt a little pull at my heart and wondered when I'd see him again.

He had very generously helped me to get what I wanted professionally, but really none of that mattered at the moment. I knew what really mattered—what was more important—was that I'd fallen in love with a very special man. I wondered if he felt anything close to what I was feeling and hoped that he did.

I stopped and bought a bottle of champagne to have chilled in the fridge when Eric came back into town. I hoped we'd be celebrating his purchase of the house in Lafayette Square. Then I spent the afternoon cleaning my apartment and doing laundry—my usual weekend chores--and watched the clock, wondering when Eric would call. I already missed him so much.

Finally, the phone rang a little after 7.

I answered with, "Hi." I saw the 212 number and knew it was him.

"Hi. How are you?"

"Good. How was your flight?"

"Uneventful. How was your day?"

"Uneventful as well. I just finished my laundry."

"That's good. I heard from Bobby. It doesn't look like I'm getting the house."

"What? What do you mean? What happened?"

He sounded much calmer than I did. But then he'd had more time to let the news sink in.

"There are multiple offers. I'm not sure how many, but I know one is over the asking price, so it looks like I'm not in the running."

"No, no. There must be something you can do. Eric, this isn't right."

"It's okay, Sookie. Really, I'm fine. There'll be other houses."

"But you love this one."

"Doesn't matter."

"Can you make another offer? A higher one."

"No."

"I'm so sorry."

"It's okay. Really."

He changed the subject and told me about the job he had to do in the morning. It was an ad for Hugo Boss, one of his regular clients.

We chatted for awhile, and then Eric said he needed to get something to eat and try to get some sleep. He was on west coast time, but he'd have to be up early and look rested. I could tell he was kind of sad. I could hear it in his voice.

Before we hung up, I asked, "Are you okay?"

"Yeah. I guess I'm just a little…you know…down. I knew I'd feel this way, but still, it sucks. Are you okay?"

"'I'm fine. I wish I had some magic words to make you feel better."

"Don't you?" I heard a smile in his voice, but wasn't sure what he wanted me to say.

"No, I don't. I wish I did."

There was a beat of silence before he aid, "Okay, I'm gonna go. I'll talk to you soon, okay?"

"Okay, bye."

I hung up feeling simply awful for Eric. I couldn't believe that just like that, someone had out-bid him on the house. That was his dream and I thought about the look in his eyes on Saturday night at dinner when he talked about it. He'd been saving his money for years and had finally had it all within his reach and now it had been snatched away from him.

I felt even worse because he had helped me reach my goal by writing a big check and I couldn't do the same for him. I took his check out of my purse and looked at it. I knew that had he not needed to spend this money on my dream, he very well could have had his own.

I didn't want the agency at the expense of Eric's happiness. I would always think of how his generosity had cost him his dream and I wouldn't be able to live with it.

I went to bed, but lay there in the dark for hours thinking of Eric and trying to come up with a way to help him until I finally fell asleep with him still on my mind.

Monday morning, I took a break from work and drove to my bank. I sat down with a loan officer and explained my situation. I told him I had made an offer on the business with Eric as a partner, but wanted to know if it were possible to get a loan for $86,000.

Mr. Cataliades smiled and shuffled through the drawer in his desk and pulled out some applications. "So, you'd like to establish a line of credit once you own the business, am I correct?"

"Oh, no. I need the loan now to buy out my partner before the offer is accepted."

"Hmm. That's a bit sticky. Why don't you come back in a few days, after the agreement has been finalized and we can see where we stand."

"Oh, that won't do. I need it now."

"I'm sorry, but considering the pending contract, we need to wait and see where the chips fall so to speak before moving forward. Even if we tried to work out just a personal loan, we wouldn't be able to get the money to you immediately."

"Okay, then. Thank you for your time."

We shook hands and I went back to work feeling even worse. My bright idea of getting the money on my own wasn't panning out at all.

Sam called me into his office towards the end of the day and told me he had rejected Quinn's offer.

"I just thought you and Eric would want to know."

"Thanks, Sam."

I went home feeling panicked about the deal moving forward. I only knew one other person who had the kind of money I needed, and I knew that person also wanted to own the agency.

I picked up the phone and called John Quinn.


	17. Chapter 17

**A/N: I just hit 1000 reviews with this story, popping my cherry for the second time, inducting me once again into the 1000-year-old Viking Club. (Hair and Makeup was my first story to hit a thousand reviews.) KatrinaP wrote the thousandth review, so I'd like to present her with the framed torn fishnets that Sookie saved (don't worry—she washed them). Thank you, Katrina, and all of you who have reviewed this story. Your sweet words have made me the drooling, shaking, strung-out review crack whore I've become and I couldn't be more grateful. Here's a little EPOV to show my gratitude…**

I met Clancy and Felicia for dinner after work on Monday. I told them that I'd met someone and they were both really happy for me.

When I got home, I called Pam and told her I didn't get the house, but that I was fine with it. If it went over the asking price, it went too high in my opinion. Pam agreed that there would certainly be other houses.

She asked how things went with Sookie and for once, she sounded sincerely interested and not eager to give me a hard time about it.

"Actually, things couldn't have gone any better. I'm…well...she's…it went great." I'm in love with her? She's the one? I wasn't sure how much I should say.

"I'm so glad for you. Really, I am. I'm happy for you both. I'm not going to say I told you so."

"You just did."

I didn't tell her about the offer to buy Sookie's runway agency. I decided I'd wait until the offer was accepted.

When I hung up, I called Sookie, but got her voice mail. I just said, "Call me, okay?" I missed her so much and was already thinking about my work schedule and when I could get back to L.A.

I also wanted her to come to New York so she could have the vacation she missed out on with her first trip, but I wasn't certain when she'd feel comfortable taking time off again. Maybe we could hire her an assistant so she could leave the office more easily and spend a little time in New York occasionally—at least until I bought a house and spent more time in L.A.

I liked the idea of _us_ hiring an assistant—of _us_ making decisions together. It was definitely Sookie's business—she had built it and she should make the big decisions, but I wanted to be there to support her whenever she needed me. I liked the idea of being her partner—both in business and in life.

I knew I was probably getting a little ahead of myself since we really hadn't spent much time together yet, but I was just so damned crazy about her, it was hard not to let my imagination run wild. I could really see myself with her for good.

I tried to tell her that at dinner on Saturday night, and I hope I was clear on how I felt. I hoped she knew how happy it made me to think of us together in one of those old dream houses.

The whole night with her Saturday night was like a dream. As much as I enjoyed Sookie's company, I, of course, also enjoyed our amazing sexual chemistry. I had never been so incredibly attracted to a woman so quickly, and yet I was also so drawn to her sweetness. I found myself wanting to fuck her blind in one minute and then hold her and take care of her in the next.

It sucked that I had to leave in such a hurry on Sunday and we didn't get to spend the morning together being lazy in her bed, but I felt good about getting the offer to Sam down on paper before I had to take off.

When I got back to New York that night, I called Sookie and told her that I was feeling down about being apart from her, but she seemed a little uncomfortable about discussing it, so I dropped it. I really wanted to hear something about how she felt about me. I had a flash of a fantasy that she'd tell me she loved me, but knew that was probably too much to hope for at that point.

Long-distance relationships brought with them their own inherent problems and I knew because we were still so new, I needed to take it slow and not push her. I was careful to not just blurt out how much I missed her or how much I felt for her in a phone conversation even though I secretly wanted all that from her.

I went to bed without hearing back from her, but wasn't worried about it. I figured I'd just talk to her in the morning and fell asleep thinking about her.

I was leaving the gym a little after noon the following day when I got a call from Sookie. She sounded excited about something.

"Eric, I have some really great news."

I assumed it was that Sam had accepted our offer. "What is it?"

"I'm able to buy the agency without your money after all."

"What?" That wasn't the news I was expecting.

"I found another way to get the money together, so you can keep your money. I've already torn up your checks."

"What are you talking about? I thought we'd agreed on this." I was starting to get pissed.

"This way, I don't need the money. I thought you'd be pleased."

"Well, I'm not. Where'd you get the money?"

"Oh, um…I found another partner. You can keep your money, Eric."

"Yeah, I got that. You keep saying that. Have you talked to Sam?"

"Yeah, he's rejected the offer we wrote up and it looks like he's going to accept my new one."

"You know what, I'm going to call him. I'll call you right back."

I hung up completely confused and pissed. What on earth had happened in the two days since Sookie and I had agreed to become business partners?

I got to my building and inside my apartment before calling Sam.

"Sam, it's Eric Northman."

"Hey, Eric. Have you spoken to Sookie?"

"Yeah, I just heard from her. So, what's going on?"

"Well, it turns out that she and the guy who'd made the first offer have worked out a deal to buy the runway division together."

I felt my face getting hot. "Quinn?"

"Yeah. Do you know him?"

"We've met."

"Well, Sookie said you'd be pleased to be released from the obligation. Quinn and Sookie just sealed the deal this morning. Their offer was a little higher than yours. We should have it all wrapped up by the end of the week."

When I heard the words "sealed the deal," I wanted to punch a fucking wall out. That motherfucker. How the fuck had this happened? He was her business partner now? Had she lost her mind?

Suddenly, I realized that I really didn't know her at all. Maybe I had just seen her the way I wanted to see her. Maybe I had been blinded by the physical chemistry between us and really hadn't seen who she really was. Maybe she had incredibly bad judgment. Or maybe I did.

"Thanks, Sam"

"No problem. I'll talk to you soon, Eric. Let us know next time you're in town."

"Sure. Will do."

I called Sookie back.

"Hi," she started.

"I just talked to Sam. You and _Quinn_ are partners now?"

"Yeah. He was the only other person I knew who had the money and wanted the agency. It just made sense."

"It made sense? Are you fucking kidding me?" My anger was building.

"Are you mad because it's Quinn? There's nothing going on between us, Eric. I'm not going to go out with him anymore."

"Well, that's wonderful news. Of course, I realize that that could change with the fucking wind. It takes you five minutes to suck some new guy into your bed."

I immediately regretted what I'd said and knew I should hang up before my temper got any hotter.

"That's not fair, Eric."

"Not fair? I'll tell you what's not fair. What's not fair is you reneging on a deal without so much as a fucking conversation. That's what's not fair."

Her voice started to get shaky. "I thought you'd be happy. This way you can keep your money."

"Yeah, I got that. I fucking got it. I CAN KEEP MY FUCKING MONEY!"

I hung up before she could say anything else and threw the phone onto the sofa as if it had burned my hand. Then I grabbed my keys and ran out the door, so incredibly pissed and needing some air to get my emotions under control. What the fuck had just happened to my life?


	18. Chapter 18

**A/N: In case you haven't heard, there's a new SVM fanfic challenge called TwoWrongsMakeaRight. Writers pick two lesser-known characters from a hat and write their story. I'm happy to pimp out my new tale called In Youthful Arms. It's a lemony little one-shot starring Octavia and Barry. I know, I know—Eric's not in it. But trust me, I think you'll like it. And if you don't trust me, read the reviews. Just click on my name, and my profile will lead you to the link (and more information about the challenge). Then, you need to pick a couple of names for yourself and start writing!**

The day after Christmas I was trying to keep my spirits up, but it had been the worst Christmas on record for me.

I was used to being alone on holidays. That wasn't anything new for me. My brother, Jason, still lived in Louisiana and we weren't close.

I had been alone in Los Angeles for years and was really fine with it. I liked my life for the most part. I'd loved my job since becoming a booker. I had good friends. I'd had a goal—something to keep me going.

I never realized just how much having that goal had meant to me until it was gone. I'd always wanted to have my own runway agency. And I'd come awfully close to having it. But now that that dream had gone up in smoke, I was very, very sad about that.

I was also still very sad at the loss of a man that I loved and had come awfully close to having as well. There for a minute, I really believed that I could have a man like Eric Northman. But, of course, that went up in smoke too.

One day, Eric and I were lovers, and I was buying the runway division of Merlotte's and Eric was buying the most beautiful house I'd ever seen, and I thought I was on my way to real happiness, both personally and professionally. And then the next day, Eric wasn't speaking to me and I was tangled up in business with the wrong person. Eric's dream house was bought by somebody else. And my world had been in a steady decline ever since.

I wasn't blaming anyone. It was completely my own fault. I made a huge error in judgment, and I paid the price.

I lost Eric when I told him I'd gone into business with Quinn. He yelled at me on the phone and insulted me. I left messages for him for ten days apologizing, but he never called me back. I finally stopped, figuring I had humiliated myself enough.

The day Quinn and I had officially become the owners of the runway division, I got my first clue I'd make a mistake when I told him I wanted to re-name our division "Runway," and he said that we'd paid good money for the name Merlotte's and weren't about to change that. He reminded me that we were not fifty-fifty partners and his decision was final.

That was also the day I asked Pam if Eric bought the house on Virginia Road and she told me that he hadn't. I had hoped that at least he would be able to have what he wanted now that he had his money back, but somehow, that hadn't worked out, and I felt just awful about it. She didn't go into detail about it—just said someone else had bought it. That was the last time his name was mentioned between me and Pam.

Eric wasn't ever booked through Merlotte's anymore, and I never asked why.

I was still very naïve and optimistic about the business until two weeks after I'd bought it when Sam sat me down and told me Quinn was buying the entire agency and Sam had decided to open his own theatrical agency. He said it was an opportunity he just couldn't walk away from. He offered me a job, but I wanted to stay with my models and book shows.

Terry left to work for Sam, and Quinn, who had sold his events planning business to buy Sam out, came to work at the agency full-time. He immediately fired the receptionist and told us we'd all have to share in answering the phones. Then he cancelled our benefits packages and said we'd have to provide out own medical insurance if we wanted it.

Quinn offered to buy my share of the company and I accepted his offer, feeling defeated but grateful to get my $64,000 back from a partner with whom I didn't want to be in business.

I prided myself on still being a good booker in spite of my obvious shortcomings as a business person, and the runway division was doing fine. Then things changed a week before Christmas when Quinn called me into his office and told me we were raising the runway rates.

"The runway department brings in the least revenue, and I want to see an increase in rates for shows. We're starting the New Year with an increase of 50% in rates for the show division."

"We raised our rates three years ago, Quinn. All the runway agencies in town got together and agreed on the increase. Without the cooperation of the other agencies, we'll just be shooting ourselves in the foot. Clients just won't book our models, and they'll get all their models from our competitors. Eventually, the models will be forced to go elsewhere to keep their clients."

"That's fine. So, we'll have fewer models and maybe fewer bookings at first. Eventually, we'll make up for it with the rate increase."

"But, our models won't be able to make a living on fewer jobs. I'm telling you, they may all leave us. They won't have a choice."

"They love you. You're the magic booker—like their mommy. Just ask them to stay and to stick it out until we can build the numbers back up."

"I can't ask them that. They have to pay their rent. They need to work steadily. They don't make the big day rates the print models make. It's a different business."

"Well, I didn't ask you in here to argue with me. I'm telling you that we're raising the rates. Deal with it, babe."

I took Pam out to lunch the following day and told her what was going on.

"I'll understand if you need to leave and go to another agency, Pam. It won't change our friendship."

"I'm not leaving you. I know a lot of the other girls will feel the same way. You've taken care of us since the beginning and we won't leave you. If we have to, we can get other jobs to fill in. I could get a waitress job or something. It'll work out."

She reached across the table and took my hand. "I'm not leaving you, Sookie. As long as you're at Merlotte's, I'm at Merlotte's."

I was touched at her loyalty, but in that moment, I knew what I had to do. I couldn't let her or any of my other models risk losing clients they had spent years cultivating. They had always depended on me to keep them working and I wasn't about to let them down. I knew they'd stay as long as I did, and I also knew they should leave and go to an agency that could take better care of them.

On Christmas Eve, I went into Quinn's office just before lunchtime.

"Are you taking off early, Sookie? Have plans for the holiday?"

"Actually, Quinn, I'm leaving for good."

"What do you mean?"

"I won't be back after the Christmas break. Today's my last day."

"Where are you going?"

"Nowhere. I don't have anything else lined up. I'm just quitting."

He studied me for a minute before saying, "You do what you have to do, babe."

I called Pam the day after Christmas to tell her the news.

"You just let us know where you land, and we'll go with you, Sookie. It's going to be fine. Don't worry."

"Thanks, Pam. After the holidays, I guess I'll try to figure out what I want to do."

There were only a handful of agencies in town that booked shows and there were certainly no openings anywhere for a booker. It wasn't what I wanted, but I hoped Sam's offer would still be good. I could learn a new business and book actors for film and TV even though it wasn't really what I'd had my heart set on. I was learning that it was very hard to get what you set your heart on in life.

I went on, "I'm not sure where I'll end up, Pam. You should go ahead and find another runway agency."

"I'm moving and my expenses are going to go down, so I can afford a little dip in business if I have to until you find a new job. I'll just wait."

"You're moving? Why didn't you tell me? Do you need any help?"

"Yeah, I'm moving into a guest house. My new landlord is out of town a lot, so I'm paying almost nothing in exchange for taking care of his dog and the main house while he's away. So, I can afford a little lull in business if I have to."

"That's great that you found a guest house—sounds really perfect, actually. When are you moving?"

"The truck comes tomorrow."

"What can I do to help?"

"You know you can tell who your real friends are when it comes to moving day. Thanks, Sookie. Actually, it would be great if you could help me with my plants and a few things I don't trust to the movers."

"Of course. What time should I be there?"

"About 3 o'clock?"

"See you then."

I went to bed in a slightly improved mood. I was happy for Pam that she'd found such a great new place to live and would be able to take a financial hit if she had to. Of course, I had dozens of other models who might not be in such a good place and I still worried about them. I decided to try and focus on the immediate future since the big picture was feeling a little overwhelming. For now, I would just look forward to helping Pam move. I turned out the light and went to sleep feeling at least a little better.


	19. Chapter 19

I found Pam's apartment door open and went inside calling her name.

She was sealing a box in the kitchen and there were only a few boxes and some plants left in the whole apartment.

"Sookie! Oh my god, I'm so glad to see you. It's been quite a day, but I'm seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. Is it 3 already?"

"Yeah. So, what can I do?"

"Just start putting the plants into your car. I'll get these last boxes."

Within a half an hour or so, we had everything loaded into our cars except the box of cleaning supplies and a broom, which we left behind.

I drove behind Pam, following her to her new place. As we turned down Crenshaw Boulevard, I got a little feeling of dread, and when she turned into Lafayette Square, I seriously felt sick to my stomach. We passed Virginia Road and turned onto Buckingham.

Pam parked in the driveway of a huge and incredibly gorgeous craftsman house. I parked on the street and got out of my car. As I approached Pam standing in the driveway, she looked at me apologetically.

"Don't worry, he's not here," she said.

"This is Eric's house?"

"Yeah. It's something, isn't it?"

"Beautiful." I just stood and gawked. It was really spectacular.

"I'm in the guest house over the garage." She started to open the gate across the driveway and a big black dog came running out. His tail was wagging so hard, his entire body wiggled.

"Lafayette! Get back here!" Pam called out.

Pam and I both went past the gate towards the garage and the dog followed us. Pam closed the gate behind us. The dog jumped up and planted his paws on my chest.

"Down!" Pam said sternly. The dog obeyed, but still kept wiggling and kissed my hands. "Sorry about that. He's learning. He's getting better about it, believe it or not."

"I know this dog." I realized I had seen him the day Eric and I were in Larchmont Village.

Pam said, "Do you? Eric got him from a rescue group called Hounds of Hope. He'd already been returned once because he's a little wild. We're trying to train him not to jump up on people anymore."

I knelt down and let him kiss me. "Lafayette. Hi, baby." He was so sweet.

"Let me just put him in the house and stop up the doggy door." I watched her lead him into the back door of the big house and then come back out to me. "So, this is my new house."

Pam gestured to the second floor of the garage. She opened the garage door and there was a red Corvette on one side. I stood back while she opened the gate and drove her car into the space beside the Corvette.

We each took a box from her trunk and Pam led me up the stairs into a beautiful storybook cottage.

"It still needs some work, but it's very cute. Two bedrooms," she said.

"Oh my god, Pam. It's great."

"Thanks. I think so too."

We finished unloading both our cars and Pam closed the gate before we headed back upstairs with the last of her potted plants.

"Let's take a little break," she suggested. We both plopped down on her living room chairs, surrounded by boxes.

I looked around the room and could see how adorable it would be once it was all straightened up.

"So, he did buy a house here after all. I'm glad," I said.

Pam looked a little sad. "I promise I'm not trying to force the two of you together, Sookie. I never would have asked you to help me if he were going to be here."

"Thanks."

"I love you both, and the last thing I want is to see either one of you hurting any more."

"I appreciate that."

"You want something to drink?"

I was happy for the change in subject. "Sure. Water would be great."

Pam went into the kitchen and I heard her open a box, presumably looking for a glass or maybe a bottle of water. I stood and looked out the living room window at the backyard. It needed some landscaping, but the fence looked sturdy. Suddenly, Lafayette went running through the yard.

"Pam, the dog got out," I called into the kitchen. "He's in the backyard. We closed the gate, didn't we?"

Pam came back into the living room and looked out the window. "Fuck. What time is it?"

I looked at my watch. "Almost 4:30."

"He's early. I'm sorry, Sookie. Eric must be home. Let me just get you some water and then we'll get out of here."

She went back to the kitchen, back to opening boxes.

I looked out the window again, but I couldn't see the dog anymore. I was craning my neck, trying to see the back of the main house when I was startled by the sound of toenails on hardwood floors behind me. I turned around and saw Lafayette wiggling my way and Eric standing in the doorway behind him.

Eric wore a pale blue long-sleeved t-shirt in some sort of clingy cotton and dark jeans. We both just stood there looking at each other for a long, painful minute.

Lafayette went into the kitchen and I heard Pam say, "Oh, hi, puppy. How'd you get in here?" She came into the living room asking, "Did we leave the door open..." and then stopped in her tracks when she saw Eric. "Oh, hi. I wasn't expecting you until tonight."

"I took an earlier flight. Thought maybe I could help you unpack. Hi, Sookie."

"Hi." I felt like I couldn't breathe.

"I saw your car out front," he said.

"She helped me with the move," Pam explained.

"That was nice. Thanks."

"Sure. No trouble." I tried to smile.

"We were just on our way back to my apartment to clean up." Pam picked our purses up off the sofa and handed me mine. "You ready to go, Sookie?"

"Do you want to see the house?" Eric asked.

Pam looked at me and gave me a look I couldn't quite read.

"Sure. I'd love to." I was fairly surprised to hear my own answer.

"Okay," Pam said. "I'm just going to run over and clean the apartment. Just close the door behind you when you leave." And then she was gone, brushing past Eric, saying a last, "Bye," as she headed down the stairs.

"So, you've met Lafayette. Do you remember him?" Eric started off.

"Yeah, of course. I'm really glad you got him."

Eric stepped aside and gestured for me to walk out the door in front of him. He closed Pam's door behind us as Lafayette joined us and we headed down the stairs and through the yard towards his back door.

We stepped into an empty room with high ceilings. "This is the breakfast room, but will eventually be a part of the kitchen." He led me into the kitchen. "And, this will obviously be much bigger." It was already about the size of my apartment.

From the kitchen, we moved into a huge empty dining room with dark blue wallpaper and an ornate crystal chandelier hanging from the center of the ceiling. One wall held dark wood built-in cabinets with glass panels. "All the floors will be refinished, of course, and the walls need paint, obviously. I love that all the trim is still dark wood. It won't have to be stripped of layers of paint."

The dining room led into a front entry way with a huge staircase. From there, we walked into the enormous and also empty living room. "The tile and mantel are original and still in good shape. The chimney cracked in the Northridge quake and will need to be rebuilt. And I need furniture, obviously."

The dog followed us through each room.

Beyond the living room, which was the length of a bowling alley, we found the den. "This will probably be a library/office thing. Maybe I'll put the TV in here. Not sure yet."

We continued back into the breakfast room and then back towards the front entry way again. "This is a bathroom and over here under the stairs is a guest closet and a pantry. I might make this the laundry room. Or I might put it off of the kitchen. I haven't decided. Right now it's in the garage."

We started up the stairs. "There are four bedrooms and two baths up here plus the terrace that overlooks the back yard." We wandered through the large empty rooms. I realized I hadn't said a word. I was just so overwhelmed.

"Everything is really amazing, Eric. I love it. I'm speechless, really."

There was a wrought iron table and four chairs on the terrace. Eric gestured to them and said, "Those were in the garage. I just cleaned them up a little."

When we walked into the last bedroom which was also the biggest, he said, "This is the master suite."

There was an unmade queen bed in the center of the room and a dresser beside it with a lamp on it. A large round dog bed was on the floor beside the bed. I noticed a lavender robe was lying across the foot of the bed and felt a little sting in my heart—did a woman live here with him? I hadn't even considered that as a possibility and realized that the idea was extremely painful.

He must have sensed my reaction and picked up the robe. "Pam stays here when I'm in New York and takes are of the dog."

I felt a rush of relief. But then I reminded myself that he still could very well be involved with someone.

He stepped into the closet with the robe and then came out with a Bloomingdale's bag and said, "This is yours."

He handed the bag to me and I thought he must be mistaken until I looked inside. My little cotton nightgown was neatly folded inside—the one I'd left on his shower rod in New York. There was also a new pair of fishnet tights still in the package. I felt a rush of emotion. I was embarrassed and sad at the same time. I thought of the night my others were torn. My lower lip quivered and I bit it, willing myself to keep it together.

"I wasn't sure about the size, so I just guessed. You can exchange them if they're the wrong size. The receipt's in there."

"Thanks. I'm sure they're fine." I kept my eyes down looking into the bag, not trusting myself to look at Eric without crying.

"Would you like something to drink?" he asked, cutting through the air that had grown thick with emotion.

I took a deep breath. "Yeah, I'd love some water."

We walked back down to the kitchen, and I was grateful to get out of his bedroom.

There was a little table and one chair in the kitchen. I set my purse and Bloomingdale's bag on the table which was covered with plastic bags from Home Depot full of who knows what.

"Have a seat," Eric offered.

I sat in the chair as he took two water bottles from the refrigerator and handed me one. He hopped up onto the counter and opened his bottle to take a drink.

"Thanks," I said, opening mine and taking a sip. Lafayette lay down on the floor at my feet.

"So, I obviously have a lot of work to do, but I'm looking forward to it," he said.

"It'll be fun, I'm sure."

We sat like that and drank our water for awhile while Eric talked at length about his plans for renovation. I mostly listened and tried not to think about how being in the room with him made me tingle all over and feel a little dizzy.

He was explaining his plans for a deck in the back and maybe a pool and when he came to the end of his descriptions, he said, "You know, when I last spoke to you…I said some awful things."

I looked down at the floor.

He went on. "I'm so sorry, Sookie. It was…I was…very upset. That's no excuse, I know. I never should have spoken to you like that."

In my head, I heard his voice raised in anger saying it took five minutes for me to suck a new guy into my bed. It hurt because it was true. I'd slept with Eric so quickly.

"It's okay." I looked up at him. "I know you were mad."

"No, it's not okay. I hope you can forgive me."

"I forgive you, Eric." I'd forgiven him months ago.

"Thank you. And I should have called you back. It was childish of me not to talk to you about what had happened. I was just…you know…upset."

"I know. I'm sorry I upset you. I…uh…I made a mistake asking for Quinn's help. I should have talked to you first. I thought I was doing the right thing, but I was really…misguided."

"Well, it's water under the bridge now."

"Yeah. Water under the bridge."

"So, how is the agency working out for you? I heard Quinn bought the whole thing. Except for the runway part, I guess."

"No, he owns that too."

He looked surprised. "What happened?"

"He returned my money."

"I'm sorry."

"It's okay. I didn't really want to own the agency anymore." He looked a little sad. "Eric, I'm sorry you weren't able to buy the house on Virginia Road. I know how much you loved it. I thought that when you got the money back that you'd loaned me, you'd be able to buy it, but I guess that didn't work out."

"It's okay. I like this one better anyway."

"Well, it's really great—amazing, really."

He waited a beat and I could tell he was working something out in his head. "Sookie, did you cut me out of the deal so I could put that money into the house offer?"

"Well, yeah. I knew that buying that house was your dream and I couldn't let what I wanted get in your way. I figured with that extra money, you'd be able to make a higher offer."

"I didn't need that money to make another offer. I had more money. I just didn't want to go higher. I thought the house was overpriced."

"You did?"

"Yeah. That wasn't my dream house. I'd be happy with pretty much any house in this neighborhood. I knew there'd be another one. I wasn't married to the idea of having that particular house."

"You weren't?"

"No. Jesus. That's what that was all about?"

"Well, this is embarrassing. I had no idea you didn't need that money. I feel more than a little stupid."

"I wanted that money to buy the business with you, Sookie. And you're not stupid. Your heart was in the right place. I just wish we'd talked about it."

I took a deep breath. "So do I."

"Well, anyway, it's all over now. I'm sorry you decided you didn't want to own the agency, but you still run it at least."

"Actually, funny you should mention that. I…um…I quit a few days ago. Quinn and I had a difference of opinion. I left the agency."

"Wow. I hadn't heard that. What are your plans?"

"Not sure. Don't look at me like that, Eric. Please, do not feel sorry for me. Trust me, I brought all of this on myself. And I'll be fine. I'll figure something out."

"I have no doubt that you will. You're a very capable woman. You walked into my life and turned it upside down in a mere few weeks."

"Yeah." I nodded and looked at the floor again.

"It was pretty crazy, huh?"

"Yeah, pretty crazy."

"Listen, I hope you'll feel comfortable coming around to see Pam. You're welcome here anytime."

"Thanks."

"I hope we can be friends."

"Of course." We had both finished our bottles of water and I wondered how much longer I could go without crying, so I said, "I should get going."

"Okay, well, it was great to see you."

"You too, Eric." I picked up my purse and Eric hopped off the counter.

He and Lafayette walked me to the front door and I turned and said, "Well, bye."

"Bye, Sookie." He leaned down and gave me a very quick and very platonic hug, but I felt like my body was on fire where he'd touched me.

I turned and walked down the front sidewalk and crossed the street to my car. Once inside, I looked back and Eric was waving from the front door. I gave him a wave and drove off.

I didn't realize it, but of course, the road dead ended because Lafayette Square was a gated community. I turned around and pulled over and stopped the car. I was feeling a little shaky and wanted a minute to get a hold of myself.

It had been very tough to see Eric. There was no point in lying to myself and saying I was no longer in love with him. I was just as in love with him as I had been on that last weekend we were together. Just being in the room with him made me feel like a current of electricity was running through my body.

I couldn't believe how foolish I'd been—giving him back the money he didn't need, didn't want. What a ridiculous mistake I'd made and what a high price I'd paid. Because of my actions, Merlotte's was owned by a man who knew nothing about the business. I had dozens of models whose livelihoods were now in jeopardy. I was unemployed myself. And I had lost the one man that I'd ever loved—worse than that, I had hurt him.

I couldn't stop the tears anymore, so I just sat and let it out. Once I felt back in control again, I took a tissue out of my purse and blew my nose. I looked in the rear view mirror and saw my red eyes and splotchy face and said out loud to myself, "Don't look at me. This is all your fault."

That made me laugh a little and I decided I was all finished with my little meltdown for the moment and put the car into drive and started driving forward again.

Within a few seconds, I saw Eric standing on the sidewalk in front of his house holding the Bloomingdale's bag that I had apparently left sitting on the table in the kitchen. I thought, oh my god, how long has he been standing there? What must he have thought of my taking so long to turn around?

I pulled over and stopped, pressing the button to roll down the passenger window. Eric set the bag on the seat and smiled into the car, saying, "You forgot this." But when he saw my face, his smile quickly faded.

I smiled and said, "Thanks," and hoped my red eyes hadn't given me away.

"Can I sit down for a second?" he asked.

I unlocked the door and he sat in the passenger seat, putting the Bloomingdale's bag in the floor. He closed the door and rolled his window up. Then he just sat there for a minute, looking out the windshield.

He finally spoke. "You okay?" He turned to me and I hated to see the pity in his eyes.

"I'm fine."

He nodded and looked back out the windshield before continuing. "Are you free for dinner?"

"I don't have any plans, but really, Eric, I'm fine. You don't have to do that."

"Do what?"

"Take me to dinner just because I'm upset."

"Oh. Well, that's not why I wanted to take you to dinner. I actually didn't realize you were upset when I decided I wanted to take you to dinner."

"Oh."

He turned and looked at me again. "I was thinking after you left, well, really before you left…I don't want to be friends. I'm not sure why I said that."

"Oh." I couldn't seem to say much other than "oh."

"We both fucked up. We both _really_ fucked up. But my feelings haven't changed. Have yours?"

I shook my head, not trusting my voice.

"Maybe we could try again. Maybe we could be a little more careful with each other's feelings this time. Maybe we could just start with dinner."

I nodded my head and we both smiled a little. My heart was fluttering in my chest.

"I want to help Pam unpack some first, so why don't I pick you up…uh…let's say around 7?"

"You know, I could help her unpack as well. I could go and pick up some dinner for the three of us and come back to help. How does that sound?"

His smile grew bigger. "That sounds perfect."

Eric leaned towards me and gave me a very soft kiss on the lips that made it hard for me to breathe; then he opened his door and got out. He took his wallet out and handed me a $50 bill.

I just looked at it and said, "No, it's my treat."

He grinned and stuck the bill into the bag on the floor. "Nice try. I'll see you in a little while then?"

"Yeah. I'll be back in an hour or so. How's that?"

"Great."

He closed the door and I drove away, finally feeling good about something—finally feeling hopeful about Eric.

**A/N: I know the person who lives in the house that Eric bought, so I decided I probably shouldn't reveal his actual address. But here's a picture of a similar craftsman style house in case you're interested. (remove spaces around dots)**

**http://img210**** . imageshack . us/img210/2869/craftsmanhouse2 . jpg**


	20. Chapter 20

**A/N: pacificbuety was kind enough to share with me that she pictured Gabriel Aubrey as Eric in this story. I looked him up, and all I can say is if you haven't seen him yet, good luck keeping the drool in your mouth. And if you have, then you understand why I am now completely infatuated with the man. He makes a lovely Eric. Thank you, pacificbuety.**

I took a quick shower and changed into jeans and a cuter top. Then I took the bottle of champagne from the fridge. I had done an excellent job of avoiding it since I'd bought it thinking we'd use it to celebrate Eric's buying the house on Virginia Road. Tonight we'd toast to Pam's move into her new home.

I drove up to Los Feliz Boulevard and went into Louise's to order some food. I got a chopped salad and a couple of pasta dishes and headed back down to Lafayette Square, feeling really good for the first time in months. I had a chance at a new start with Eric and I was determined not to blow it this time.

Pam's door was open, so I went into the kitchen with the sack of food and champagne. Pam was drying a plate. Lafayette came in wiggling and kissing.

"Oh, good, you're here. I found us some dishes. I'm starving," Pam said.

I started to take the food out of the bag and set it on the kitchen counter. Pam called out, "Eric, Sookie's here," as if it were the most normal thing in the world. Then she turned to me and explained, "He's hanging a mirror in the bedroom."

"Oh, hi, you're back," he said as he entered the kitchen. He gave me a kiss on the cheek and picked up the champagne bottle. "Excellent! We have a lot to celebrate."

We filled our plates and took them along with our glasses of champagne into the living room and sat to eat.

I raised my glass and said, "To Pam's new home."

Eric added, "And to new beginnings."

We all smiled and took a sip and then dug into the food.

After dinner, I worked in the kitchen, putting shelf paper in the cabinets and unpacking and washing dishes.

Pam worked on organizing her closet and Eric set her computer up in her office—the second bedroom.

I was hanging the coffee mugs on little hooks inside a cabinet when Eric came up behind me and wrapped his arms around me. He nuzzled into my hair and said, "I'm kind of at a stopping point. How about you?"

I set the cup I was holding on the counter so I wouldn't drop it. I wondered if my knees would buckle. It was hard to stay in control with Eric up against my body like that.

"Uh, yeah, let me just finish putting these cups away." I made no attempt at putting the cups away. Eric pushed my hair back and kissed my neck. I became a puddle of mush.

I turned my face towards him a little and his kisses found my cheek, my temple, my hairline. I closed my eyes, wishing for the moment to never end.

Pam's voice startled us from behind Eric and he stopped kissing me. "I hate to kick you guys out of here, but I'm really beat. I need to go to bed."

Eric stepped back and I continued hanging the cups, saying, "Okay. I'm done here," as I finished.

We said our good nights to Pam and she thanked us for our help. Lafayette, Eric and I went into the main house and Eric asked, "Chamomile tea?" as we walked into the kitchen.

"Sure." I smiled, thinking of the night in New York when he'd warmed me up with the same thing.

When we both had our cups filled with tea and Lafayette's water bowl had been refilled, Eric led me through the dining room and up the stairs. He turned out lights as we went through each room. I wondered if that meant I was staying and I felt a little shiver run up my spine at the prospect of a night in Eric's arms.

I thought we were going to his bedroom until he turned and headed for the terrace. We each took a chair and set our cups on the table. Lafayette lay down underneath the table.

"I'm so happy you're here," Eric said.

"So am I."

"So, tell me about your skills with a paint brush. How about power tools?"

I smiled. "I probably have a lot to learn."

"Oh, good. I have a lot to teach you then."

We sipped our tea and talked about the house and Eric's plans for it. He said he'd bought some books about craftsman style and decorating and asked me if I'd help him pick out colors for each room. I couldn't wait to help even though I wasn't so certain of my abilities, but Eric said we'd learn together.

When we'd finished our tea, Eric took my hand and pulled me first to stand and then to sit in his lap. I curled into his arms and rested my head on his shoulder.

Eric whispered, "I've missed you so much."

"I missed you too. I'm so sorry I screwed everything up."

"It's okay, sweetie. That part's over. You're here now. That's what matters. We have another chance."

I sat back and looked into Eric's eyes and said, "In case I do something else really stupid, I just want you to know that I love you. No matter what happens, you should know that."

He touched my lips with a finger, and I went on, "I knew that I did before but I didn't say it, and I should have."

He smiled and nodded and as he leaned in to kiss me, he said, "I love you, too."

The kiss was warm and soft. His tongue brushed against my lips and I parted them for him. We weren't in a hurry and I felt like we were handling each other as if we were made of glass.

When Eric broke the kiss, he whispered, "Will you stay with me tonight?"

I answered him with a "mmm, hmm."

"We're going to take it slow this time. Be more careful."

"Okay."

"We seemed to do everything backwards before—kissing before our first date."

"We did much more than kiss before our first date."

"True. That was my fault. I made a lot of mistakes with us, and I very well might make some more, but hang in there with me, okay?"

"Okay."

"We'll figure it out together this time."

"Sounds good."

Lafayette interrupted us with an odd sound from beneath the table. I asked Eric, "Was that a snore?"

"No, I'm sorry to say. He farted. I changed his food, which may have been a mistake considering the night I was hoping for with you here. Sorry about that, but I promise, it wasn't me."

"That's okay. I can't tell the difference."

Eric looked at me with an expression of slight horror before I quickly continued, "I mean, I can't tell the difference between a _fart_ and a _snore_ from _the dog_. That's what I meant. Not that I couldn't tell the difference between you and the dog."

We both started laughing and then when Lafayette made yet another little sound, we really lost it and were soon unable to speak we were laughing so hard.

When we finally calmed down, Eric said, "I'm sorry about that. Lafayette would apologize if he could."

"No, it's fine. It's great, actually. If either of us has any trouble…you know…because we 'changed our food,' we can always blame it on the dog. It's perfect, really."

"Well, I should take him downstairs and make him go out again before bed." I stood up and Eric stood and picked up our empty cups.

"Would you mind bringing my purse up? I left it in the kitchen."

"Sure, I'll get it."

Eric and Lafayette headed down the stairs and I went to the bathroom. When I came out, Eric handed me my purse and I explained, "I brought my little travel toothbrush—feeling very optimistic."

He pulled me to him and gave my butt a squeeze while nipping on the skin of my neck and saying, "Hurry, okay?"

"Okay."

I broke away reluctantly and went back into the bathroom and brushed my teeth and washed my face. When I came out, Eric passed me wearing some gray sleep pants and nothing else. I heard him brushing his teeth in the bathroom and I started undressing, folding my clothes and placing them on the dresser.

Lafayette watched me from his bed on the floor.

I noticed Eric's bed had been made. I pulled the covers back and slipped between the sheets quite naked and quite excited about what might be next on our agenda.

When Eric came out and pulled the covers back a little, he looked at me and smiled, saying, "Oh, I think I'm over-dressed."

"I can help you there," I replied and untied the drawstring of his pants. I gave them a little tug and they fell to the floor. He stepped out of them and tossed them onto the foot of the bed as he climbed in with me, extremely excited about the rest of the evening as well. There was no mistaking his…um…excitement.

"Would you like the light off?" he asked as he took me in his arms.

I inhaled at the sensation of skin on skin. "No."

His mouth was on mine and our tongues met. I put a hand between us and took hold of what I wanted. I trembled in anticipation of what would soon be happening.

He broke the kiss and asked, "Are you cold?"

"No. I just want you."

He just looked into my eyes and said, "God," before kissing me again. This time, the kiss was more urgent and his hands began to explore my body. I felt a finger slip inside me and begin to move in the same rhythm my hand was moving on him.

He kissed down my neck and latched onto a nipple, sucking hard. I was forced to let go of his erection when he scooted down and so I just gripped his hair and held him to my breast. He spent a long time kissing and caressing both of my breasts and his finger never stopped what it was doing. I had begun to move against his hand, feeling my climax well on its way.

Eric licked my stomach and then kept going lower until his tongue touched my clit. I was already so close and with just a few perfect strokes of his tongue, I came hard and loudly, holding onto Eric's head and pressing myself into his mouth.

With my last little contraction, Eric withdrew his finger and reached beside the bed to the dresser drawer. I watched him pull out a condom and roll it on. A soon as he was all ready, I pushed him onto his back and climbed onto his body.

I looked into his eyes and watched his expression as I raised up on my knees and guided him into me. I began to lower myself down onto him with a slow tortuous rhythm. His eyes clouded over in ecstasy and when he was all the way inside me, he closed his eyes and said, "So fucking good."

I leaned forward and kissed his mouth and began to ride him. He gripped my hips firmly and just moaned into my mouth. I could feel another orgasm on its way and hoped Eric would join me, but just as I began to climax, he held me still and grabbed my butt a little harder.

In one swift motion, he rolled me onto my back, still inside me. He took my leg and placed it carefully over his shoulder, allowing him to go in even deeper. "Is this okay?" he asked, his voice thick with lust.

All I could do was grunt in response because my orgasm had begun and I couldn't speak. I cried out a few times and he held still, all the while looking into my eyes. As my climax wound down, he began to move again and within just a few strokes, he closed his eyes and said a loud, "Fuck," between gritted teeth as he came.

When Eric opened his eyes again, he smiled down at me, breathing heavily. I lowered my leg that was over his shoulder and he held me close and kissed me, saying, "So perfect, so fucking perfect," between kisses.

I was still unable to form speech, so just responded with little moans of affirmation. I was drained of every ounce of energy and closed my eyes, relaxing in the exquisite afterglow.

I must have dozed off because suddenly, I felt Eric pulling out. I kind of jumped and I heard Eric chuckle as he got out of the bed and headed into the bathroom. I was trying to think of how to tell him how amazing he was while I waited for him to come back to bed, but that was the last thing I remembered. I fell asleep in Eric's bed on the first night of what I hoped would be many with the man of my dreams.


	21. Chapter 21

I lay beside Sookie and watched her sleeping in my bed—something I never would have imagined happening just yesterday—hell, just this morning. I laughed at myself. I kept telling her we would take things slow—be more careful this time, and yet here we were.

Obviously things with Sookie were all or nothing. Even when they were nothing, it felt like everything. A day hadn't gone by that I hadn't thought of her—obsessed over her, since that fight we'd had over the phone—about money, of all stupid things. But, of course, it really had nothing to do with money, and everything to do with trust.

From the very beginning of our oddly warped relationship, I'd made myself out to be her knight in shining armor. I saved her from the burning building—quite literally. I came with my cavalry of cash to help her get the agency. I thought she needed me so much and that once she saw that, she'd be eternally grateful and we'd find that happily ever after I had in my head.

When she called and told me she had partnered with Quinn, I saw red. All I thought was, she doesn't need me at all. I'm just some self-important rich asshole that she's had a few good fucks with.

She'd fallen for me so fast and I'd been convinced it was because I was just so great, but then it suddenly dawned on me, maybe she falls that fast for everyone. Maybe I just overwhelmed her by kissing her in the dark theater and then playing her rescuer in New York. I had gone about winning her so poorly, maybe I hadn't really won her at all. Maybe the next guy with a trench coat and a fat bank account could just take her away from me.

It scared me. I practically called her a slut and hung up on her. I didn't really think she was a slut, of course. Far from it. I was afraid that's what she thought of me, actually. I was afraid I wasn't as important to her as she'd become to me.

Because I have testicles, I learn much more slowly when it comes to romance. Sometimes, it amazes me how stupid I can be when it comes to women. I was so pissed that I listened to her messages of apology for ten days, smugly thinking that it would take more than that to get me back.

Then, when they stopped, I was even more pissed that she didn't even want to try any more. Fuck her, I thought. I don't need it.

I went back to L.A. to look at the Buckingham house, and when I got to Pam's, she asked if Sookie was going to look at it with us. I was unpacking my bag and putting things into her guest closet and she sat on the sofa watching me. Our appointment to see the house was in half an hour.

"No, Sookie's not going," I answered.

"Don't tell me you fucked it up already, brother."

She was laughing, but I wasn't. "Just stay the fuck out of this, okay?"

Pam stopped laughing.

I went on, "I'm done with Sookie. Got it? We're done. And I don't need your shit about it." My voice cracked a little and I left the room and went into the bathroom and closed the door.

When I came back out into the living room, Pam was standing by the door with her purse, ready to go. She just said, "I'm sorry."

"So am I." I tried to give her a smile, but probably failed at looking very happy. "Don't say anything to her about this, okay? I really just want to forget about it."

"Okay."

That was the last time Sookie's name was mentioned between us.

I heard on the grapevine that John Quinn had bought out Merlotte's, and that Sam was opening a theatrical agency. I called the office the next day, and one of the print bookers answered the phone. I just told him that I wouldn't be accepting any more bookings from Merlotte's and thanked him for the past bookings. I didn't give a reason.

My offer on the Buckingham house was accepted and I focused all my energy on the house after that. When we closed, I flew to L.A. and immediately started working on the guest house. I also bought myself a Corvette, happy that I wouldn't be renting cars in L.A. anymore now that I had my own garage in which to keep one.

I had already talked to Hounds of Hope about the goofy black dog. Fortunately for me, he had been returned to his foster because he kept jumping up on people.

A woman named Marti from Hounds of Hope met me and Pam at the house for a home check. We explained that Pam would be staying at the house when I was in New York. We walked the yard and checked the fences, and I gave her the tour of the mostly empty house. Apparently, we passed inspection because the next day Lafayette, Pam and I went to Petco together to buy his supplies, and just like that, he was mine.

I promised Marti that I wouldn't return him no matter how many times he jumped up on people. I'd loved him even before I got him—kind of like Sookie.

Pam and I had been working on the guest house for her, but I went back to New York for a couple of bookings right before Christmas and stayed through the holiday. On Christmas Day, Clancy, Felicia and I volunteered at a homeless shelter like we had on previous holidays, and then I spent the next day at their place for a drop-in party. I had just told them that things hadn't worked out with the woman I'd met, and they were kind enough to not ask questions.

On my way home from Clancy and Felicia's, I stopped in Bloomingdale's to pick up something for Pam. We'd promised each other no presents this year since we figured the house and the dog were enough to celebrate, but I didn't want to go to L.A. empty-handed. It just felt wrong.

I found an Italian hand-painted scarf that looked like her and as I headed to a register to pay for it, I saw a bunch of mannequin legs with different colors of hose on them and one was wearing fishnets. I probably stood and stared at the legs too long and looked like a pervert, but I was stuck.

I'd thought about the fact that I owed Sookie at least one pair of fishnets and possibly a hundred pairs if I were a man of my word, but it was always too painful to go out and actually buy them. Before I could talk myself out of it, I bought the tights and had the saleswoman put them and their receipt in a separate bag.

I figured I could just give them to Pam and have her pass them along to Sookie. When I got to my apartment, I put her little night gown in the bag as well and put it in my suitcase.

There was a mix-up on Pam's moving date, and the movers came a day before we'd planned—or I guess, before I'd planned. I hated not being there to help her, but at least I caught an earlier flight so I could help her unpack.

I took a cab to the house, and my stomach did a little flip when I saw Sookie's car parked across the street. I thought, well, it's time to face the music. She was either here to see me for some reason--and I must admit, that's what I secretly hoped, or she was here with Pam, which was more likely. Either way, I knew I'd eventually have to deal with it since she was Pam's best friend and it was unlikely we could avoid each other forever.

I went into the house and Lafayette gave me his usual sweet greeting. There seemed to be no one else at home, so I took my suitcase upstairs and put it in the closet. Then I went down and saw the doggy door closed and figured Pam had stopped the dog up while the movers were there.

There was no sign of a truck, so I let the dog out. Then I walked to the garage and went up the steps. The door wasn't completely closed, so I pushed it open and Lafayette ran past me into the room. Sookie was standing in front of the window and turned to face me looking even more beautiful than I'd remembered. I was at a complete loss for words, and apparently so was she because we just stood there and stared at each other until Pam came in and broke the tension.

I asked Sookie if she'd like to see the house and was relieved when she said yes. Pam was kind enough to disappear, and I took Sookie on the grand tour. I was very nervous and talked too much, and she hardly said a word.

I was uncomfortable in the bedroom with her, wishing things between us were different and I could just make love to her like nothing had happened. But then I remembered to give her the fishnets—evidence that a lot had happened in the past few months and they were a painful reminder that I had no right to even touch her, much less make love to her.

I sensed that she was as uncomfortable as I was, and so I offered her something to drink to get us out of the bedroom.

We sat in the kitchen and I rambled on like an idiot about the house, avoiding what we really needed to discuss. I finally apologized for what I'd said to her—something I should have done months ago and would have if I hadn't had such a bruised ego. She said she forgave me and seemed sincere.

Then we got onto the subject of Merlotte's and I was shocked to learn that not only was she no longer a partner there, but she'd actually quit.

And when I realized that she'd cut me out of the purchase of the agency because she thought I needed the money for the Virginia Road house, suddenly, I felt so frustrated.

We'd gone through all the pain of the past months over a stupid misunderstanding. I shouldn't have lost my temper when she'd called that day. If only I'd given her a chance to explain herself. I was too busy feeling sexually inadequate and calling her a whore. What an idiot. And what a price I'd paid for being such an idiot.

I could see she was uncomfortable and told her that she was welcome at the house anytime and that I hoped we could be friends. As soon as the words left my mouth, I regretted them. I didn't want to be Sookie's friend. I wanted to ask her out. I wanted her to give me another chance. I'd missed her so much and we'd already wasted so much time apart.

But Sookie said she had to go and so I walked her out and said goodbye. I'd obviously freaked her out a little, and I decided I'd let her go and give her a minute to breathe, but I'd also decided I was definitely going to call her and try again.

I watched her drive away and went inside, wondering how long I should wait before calling her. When I got to the kitchen, I saw the Bloomingdale's bag and ran out the door, hoping to catch her. I stood on the curb and decided I didn't want to wait, and that I'd ask her to dinner as soon as she pulled up.

But she didn't pull up. I stood and waited and was considering walking to the end of the block to see what had happened when I saw her coming towards me.

I gave her the bag and saw that she'd been crying and felt like an ass for upsetting her. Why were we so good at hurting each other? Well, I knew she was good at hurting me because I loved her, and I hoped that was why she'd been crying in her car—because she loved me as well.

I got in and asked her out. I told her that my feelings hadn't changed and she said neither had hers. I felt like the weight of the last months had been lifted from my chest and saw the relief in her smile as well. We made plans for her to bring food back and eat while we helped Pam, which was great since I hadn't actually done a thing to help and intended to.

I gave her what I hoped was an appropriate kiss—hopeful, but not overwhelming, and went inside the house, happier than I'd been in a long time.

I fed the dog and made the bed and unpacked my bag before going over to Pam's. She was back from closing up her apartment and was in the kitchen unpacking some boxes. I handed her the bag with the scarf in it and she peeked in and smiled, pulling it out dramatically.

"I love it, but we said we no presents."

"It's not much."

Then she went to her purse on the counter and pulled out a little blue box, and handed it to me.

I opened it to find a little silver key chain with the letter E on it.

"For your new keys—new car, new house…" she explained.

"You spent too much."

"So did you."

"Sookie's bringing us some dinner."

Pam looked a little shocked. "Really?"

"Yeah. We had a talk. I should have done it sooner."

"Well, Merry Christmas, brother."

Pam gave me a hug and I kissed the top of her head and said, "Merry Christmas."

When Sookie arrived with the food (and champagne! Someone was feeling celebratory.), the three of us sat and ate as if we'd always spent our evenings together. There was no awkwardness, and even better, no pain. I felt relaxed and happy.

We all pitched in to help Pam get settled, and when I finished setting her computer up, I went into the kitchen and held Sookie and hopefully showed her how happy I was that she was with us.

Pam kicked us out and Sookie and I sat on the terrace and had a cup of tea and talked some more about the house and about us. Sookie told me she loved me and I remembered the night on the phone when I'd wanted her to say it so badly. I was so grateful that we had another chance.

Lafayette killed the romantic mood with his special brand of potpourri, but it was actually fine because we had a good laugh about it.

I took Lafayette out and locked up the house, and went upstairs to get ready for bed. I kept reminding myself that I promised Sookie we'd go slow, but when I saw her naked under my covers, I lost the ability to use logic and showed her just how much I'd missed her.

Afterwards, I was trying to clear the fog from my brain to try and tell her how I felt when I heard that little snore again. This time I was actually still inside her and it made me laugh how she always seemed to just konk out after we had sex. I took it as a compliment.

I got up and went to the bathroom and turned out the light and just lay beside her and watched her sleeping for a very long time. I thought, yes, it had been a rough road to get to this place, but maybe it was a good thing. Maybe it would make us more careful with each other's hearts. Maybe it would make us appreciate what we have because we knew how easily it could get fucked up.

I made a silent promise to myself and to her that I would never stop trying to make things right between us. I'd never take her for granted. If she let me, I'd show her every day how much I loved her. I wrapped my arms around her and fell asleep hopeful and happy to have Sookie back in my life.


	22. Chapter 22

I'm lying in the tub, thinking about the first bath I took in Eric's New York apartment. I was feeling so shy and so attracted to him on that night. Things certainly have changed since then.

Tonight is the one-year anniversary of the first night I spent the night with Eric in this house. It's hard to believe so much has happened—so much has changed. The house itself has undergone an incredible transformation. It still isn't finished, of course, but most of the big stuff is done—the upgrades to the plumbing and electrical systems, the new kitchen, and most of the rooms are at least partially furnished. I love it more and more very day.

I love Eric more every day as well. I'm not saying having a boyfriend who travels to New York a lot doesn't present its challenges, but honestly, it also probably keeps things spicy for us in the bedroom. It doesn't hurt for us to miss each other once in awhile. Most of the time, we don't even make it up to the bedroom when he comes home after a trip.

I've also had several very fun-filled trips to New York with Eric, and he's made sure I've enjoyed the city and seen all the sights I'd wanted to see and missed on that first trip there.

I hear a tiny knock on the bathroom door and sit up in the tub, wrapping my arms around my chest in giddy anticipation of Eric's entry.

"Come in," I call out.

Eric opens the door with a smile and steps into the room. I take a look at his black t-shirt and pout.

"What?" he asks.

I just look at the writing on the front. "Eric," I say in warning. He looks down at the white letters across the front of his shirt: Runway. I go on, "Does that seem right to you?"

"Okay, okay," he concedes and turns around to leave. "Print" is written across the back.

When we opened the agency, we decided to name the two divisions separately, but most people just called it "Print and Runway." We took Quinn's remaining bookers and hired a couple of new ones, and of course, took almost all of his models. I'd heard that Merlotte's was for sale again, but doubted if there was much left to sell.

After a minute, I hear Eric and Lafayette approaching the door. Eric says, "Sit," and, "Stay," to Lafayette before knocking again.

"Come in," I call out again, getting back into position.

This time, Eric enters in a black tank top and navy sleep pants. Much better.

"Are you okay? Need anything?" he asks.

I just shake my head.

"There are clean towels in the cabinet underneath the sink." We have no cabinet underneath the sink. "And I think there's a spare toothbrush in the drawer." There is no drawer.

He stands beside the tub and adds, "Can I make you some tea?"

I reach up and wordlessly untie the drawstring of his pants. They fall to the floor, revealing compelling evidence that Eric likes the game we're playing. He starts to pull his tank top off but I say, "No." I don't want him in the tub with me.

He stops and looks down at me. We like to change it a little each time. This time, I raise up onto my knees and pull him a little closer to the tub. He steps out of the pants on the floor and puts a hand on my head as I take him into my mouth.

I can't take him all in, of course, but he never complains. The parts that won't fit I try to entertain with my hands. Eric is making happy little sounds and then whispers, "That's good," and so I speed up just a touch. I can feel he's getting close. His hips start to move and his hands are both in my hair, guiding me the way he likes it.

Suddenly, he pulls out of my mouth abruptly and I look up, confused. He bends forward and pulls me to stand from beneath my arms and I say, "Really?"

I wasn't expecting this and watch his teasing smile as he leads me dripping wet across the floor and stands me against the sink, facing the mirror. "Oh, okay," I say as I bend over the sink and place my hands on the wall on either side of the medicine cabinet. Now I see what he wants.

Eric enters me easily and we both groan at the sensation. He has a good grip on my hips and I watch his face in the mirror as he watches where he's going in and out of me. We're both happy with our view.

Eric reaches around me and presses a finger against my clit as he rides me and I close my eyes in bliss, knowing it won't be long now. He starts pounding a little harder and each time he goes in, I feel myself getting closer and closer. I say, "Almost there," and Eric stops. I cry out, but know he won't move for another agonizing minute. We've learned that if he teases me to the edge and then stops, it makes my orgasm even better.

I whimper to let him know to keep going and he resumes his movements. This is going to be a good, I think, and just as I get close, I hear, "Look at me, lover."

I open my eyes and see Eric's face in the mirror just as I explode and then he begins to fill me as he comes right along with me. We both cry out while watching each other, both focused on the incredibly powerful sensations.

As we come down, Eric leans forward and hugs me to him and kisses my back. I let my head flop forward and close my eyes, completely spent.

After a moment, Eric says, "Don't even think about falling asleep." He knows me so well. "We have a dinner reservation in an hour."

"I know, I know." I reluctantly lift my head as Eric pulls out. He picks up his pants off of the floor and gives my butt a squeeze as he passes behind me and adds, "I'll feed the dog."

I try to regain my composure as I drain the tub, brush my teeth and put my makeup on. Then I let my hair down and go into the bedroom to get dressed. I decide on a little black dress with fishnets, of course. I seem to have an endless supply.

As I'm stepping into my shoes, Eric comes in. He has on dark blue pants and a forest green dress shirt.

"Wow, you look beautiful," he says as he kisses me sweetly and heads for the closet.

"Thanks."

He emerges wearing his distressed brown leather jacket and zips it all the way up, then sticks his hands into his pockets.

"You're going to need a jacket, sweetie," he says.

"My coat's downstairs."

"Okay. You ready then?"

"Yeah."

"Wait, what about jewelry?"

"Oh, right. I guess I should put on some earrings or something." I go to the dresser and open my jewelry box.

Eric comes up behind me and says, "Why don't you wear this?"

I turn around to see him pull a tiny black box from his jacket pocket and hand it to me. My heart starts to race and I feel just like probably millions of women who just instinctively know what's about to happen to their lives at a moment like this.

I feel the tears start just as I open the box to reveal the huge diamond ring. I just cry like a fool while Eric takes the ring out and slips it onto my shaky finger.

"Will you marry me?" he asks unnecessarily and I just nod as he kisses me.

We stand and kiss and hold each other while I try and get my emotions under control. When I finally pull back, I see Eric's eyes wet with tears as well.

"I love you so much," he says and again, all I can do is nod.

I finally say, "I love you, too."

"I know, baby. Let's go eat."

Eric kisses my now ring-clad hand and we head down the stairs of our beautiful dream house. I get my coat and purse and kiss our sweet dog goodbye as we go out the door to celebrate the rest of our lives together.

XXX

**A/N: Please watch for my next TwoWrongsMakeaRight story called Portia. It's an unlikely little love story about Portia and Tray. I will also soon begin posting Sookie Stackhouse's Facebook Feed, which is just a periodic look at Sookie's Facebook page so you can keep up with what's going on with her. I hope you enjoy!**


End file.
